I am well aware how late this post is. That's why I'm keeping it simple and quick. Since the start of the year I've been doing posts on my website about my favourite stuff from 2025. Normally I would adapt whatever I post there to Tumblr's formatting, but this time, considering I've already spent over two months on it, I'll be keeping it as a website exclusive. If you're interested in checking it out, here's the link! If you'd rather stay on Tumblr, I understand. Happy scrolling!
As I mentioned in the last piece in the series, the music landscape at this point has broadened to the point that these top ten albums are no longer all that representative of the decades themselves, so drawing conclusions about the music of the decade from the ten that make this post would be silly. That being said, the top ten has seemingly become a little bit more homogenous. Maybe not in the genres necessarily, but it feels like a much clearer music taste. Like there is a type of person that likes most of these albums. It's interesting to note because, looking ahead, I don't think that's really true of the next few decades and hasn't really been the case for the last few either. That being said, quality albums are quality albums, and there are a few here that I haven't heard before, so it should still be very worthwhile.
Quick note: This post, along with all my recent posts, is available first and with better formatting on my website, chaosincurate.blog. I'd appreciate you checking it out over there instead, and if you like my writing I'd really appreciate you subscribing to hear more from me. No pressure of course, the words are all the same here if you'd rather stay on platform. Onto the rest of the post!
Death - Symbolic
Genre: Metal
Songs to try: Symbolic, Zero Tolerance
I hate that I hate metal so much. I have tried to approach the genre's most acclaimed albums with an open mind, but it often just doesn't appeal to me. And worse yet, I struggle to even understand much of the appeal on an academic, objective level. I often don't feel nor understand the appeal, which is weird for me. And that makes it really difficult to talk about music from the genre without just talking about what I don't like about it, which just seems unproductive. I have more to say on the rest of the music from this decade, but unfortunately we're kicking things off with a massive miss that I'm just going to have to tank. This is on me, I just don't know how to engage with this.
A Tribe Called Quest - The Low End Theory
Kind of like: Wu-Tang Clan, Illmatic
Songs to try: Check the Rhime, Show Business
This is far more my speed. A 90s hip-hop classic with incredible basslines and prototypical but effective and charming rapping. It's very clearly dated and would almost certainly be outdated if not for the fact that it is one of the best executed versions of this early hip-hop sound. Stylistically emulated even by people who barely know hip-hop exists, but never replicated even by extremely skilled rappers of the time, this solidifies itself as a crucial listen for rap fans.
It is definitely worth stressing that it is very much a 90s rap album. It isn't conceptual, it's simple compared to a lot of the stuff you hear nowadays, it is purely focused on technical skill and fun grooves, but if you're willing to engage it on that level, you will be rewarded with something that excels in both those areas. It's another album that is hard to talk about, but that's just because it's no nonsense. It's just a straightforward, good album, and a very fun time.
Sade - Love Deluxe
Kind of like: Isaac Hayes, George Michael, SZA
Songs to try: Like a Tattoo, No Ordinary Love
On the previous entry in this series I described Sade's last album's sound as essentially glitzy-yet-yearning. Like someone who has seen what wealth can bring but also sees very clearly what it costs and what it could never bring. Here, a lot of that glitz has been removed in favour of something a little darker and more grounded. The elements of rock, especially in the opener, No Ordinary Love, really brought an interesting twist to Sade's formula that hooked me immediately.
That darker side makes it's way into the lyrics at times too. While there were quite a few pessimistic songs on Diamond Life -- most notably When Am I Going to Make a Living?, which this album reminds me of quite a bit -- nothing quite gets as dark as Like a Tattoo, which describes the guilt of a war veteran as he reckons with what he has done now that he's returned to normal life, away from the environment that justifies his violence.
It's possible for darkness to turn into a childish edginess if approached without maturity, but if you're familiar with Sade, you won't be surprised to hear her writing is very mature here. Not only is there nuance in the album, with more happy subject matters being touched on as well, but even in Like a Tattoo the war criminal is treated with some empathy, which takes a great deal of emotional maturity. To balance a condemnation with empathy towards someone who acknowledges what they have done is no easy feat. Many struggle with it even in cases of much lesser sins, but Sade proved capable of seeing such an emotionally charged situation with clarity. It is very impressively handled and was ambitious to even attempt.
So there's no surprise here, I recommend this album to anyone interested in soul. It's one of my favourites in the early stages of exploring the genre, and it would be an excellent bridge into it if you typically enjoy slightly more rock-leaning stuff.
Fiona Apple - When the Pawn...
Kind of like: Regina Spektor, Mitski, Jeff Buckley
Songs to try: Paper Bag, Get Gone, Limp
I've really loved this album for a little while now, and it's one of those albums where I never really thought about exactly what it is that I like about it. I've always just thought it is good, it's a thing that is whole and that I've never really thought to dissect outside of appreciating certain lines from the lyrics. What better reason to consider that though, than for a write-up on a music blog?
I briefly touched the lyrics on this album, and that is absolutely where it excels for me, but Fiona Apple doesn't just settle for interesting lyrics, but also made the instrumentals incredibly rich and exciting too, with a warm, slightly hostile-feeling production to tie it all together, which suits a lot of the themes of the album, especially with songs like Get Gone where Fiona sings about finally accepting that a relationship is bad for her and gaining the self-respect to just leave and stay gone.
She does a similar thing on Tidal too: not content to just let you hear the words and hoping you take them in and be affected by them alone, she makes full use of her sonic palette to make you feel the words on a deeper level no matter how much attention you pay them.
In that way this is a case of an artist pushing their medium to it's emotional limits. making use of everything they possibly can to achieve the desired effect on their audience. Truly combining poetry and music to make both more impactful as opposed to having one simply accompany the other. It is truly one of those albums that is so good in so many ways that it is harder to think of someone who won't get anything out of it than someone who will. Definitely one of my favourites of the decade.
Lauryn Hill - The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill
Genre: Neo-soul, Contemporary R&B
Songs to try: Doo Wop (That Thing); Every Ghetto, Every City
I honestly got to this album a little later than I would have liked. In the end it took being the only part of the Apple Music top 100 albums list that pretty much everyone I saw agreed deserved its place for me to actually take it out of the purgatory of my "to-listen" list and into my actual library. I didn't quite feel that level of reverence for it on a personal level, but I could absolutely see the appeal and still was able to enjoy it despite the album not living up to my expectations.
One thing that I really appreciate with this album is the commitment to the classroom aesthetic, with not just the skits (which are brilliant), but with the simplicity of the percussion and the constant adlibs you might see from kids in a classroom combatting boredom with an improvised beat made from hands and pencils hitting tables and chairs while freestyling with whatever comes to mind.
That doesn't mean it feels underbaked or amateurish though. Beneath the simple aesthetics of the album is a tight groove and a smorgasbord of vocal tricks and dynamic melodies that seem improvised but always professionally, never clashing with the other instruments or coming unglued from the rhthym of the song.
It seems to be a pretty common trend in this series, but the appeal here seems to be very straightforward: it is an exceptionally talented artist keeping it simple and excelling at all the basics. Only adding flair in the production or instrumental when necessary, but otherwise just having fun with a few basic elements, enjoying professionally recorded music in it's rawest form. It gives it a broad appeal without dumbing anything down.
Björk - Homogenic
Kind of like: Portishead, Kid A, FKA twigs
Songs to try: Bachelorette, All Is Full of Love, Alarm Call
There are many ways talking about an album can be difficult. I could be tasked with finding something positive to say about an album I don't like, I can find it hard to discuss an album that just doesn't seem particularly noteworthy at all, I can struggle to understand a genre that I haven't been able to grasp yet. This type of challenge is definitely my favourite to come across though: resisting the urge to simply run through every single track because I love it so much.
There is one song that I absolutely have to single out here though is Bachelorette. This is easily one of my favourite songs of the decade, if not my decisive favourite. I don't know where to even begin to tackle the individual limbs of this sonic leviathan, but the whole beast is almost a hyper-anthem. Everything is so massive, and the blend of the digital with the orchestral is really naturally done and it really helps to elevate the song. I think the sound that sticks out most is an upright bass? I'm honestly not sure, but whatever the sound is, it serves two purposes extremely well: 1. It propels the instrumental magnificently and 2. feeds into the songs vibe of sinister inevitability. It's the Jurassic Park T-Rex footsteps. Rhythmic and foreboding.
There's plenty more to pick out but I've already spent a lot of words on this song, so I'll keep it brief. That being said though, I need to touch on the vocals and the lyrics too. If you don't get chills at lines like "I'm a fountain of blood // In the shape of a girl" and "If you forget my name // You will go astray", you might need to see a doctor. Björk puts all of her heart and soul into this vocal performance, and the lyrics seem equally self-sacrificial, following on from the fountain of blood line there's "Drink me, make me feel real // Wet your beak in the stream", and later "I'm a tree that grows hearts // One for each that you take // You're the intruder's hand // I'm the branch that you break". I don't know if I can do these vocals justice in words, but you should absolutely give the song a listen so you see what I mean. They are absolutely awe-inspiring. Possibly my favourite vocal performance in music ever.
The album in general is really interesting and difficult to sum up without falling into the cliché of just pointing out contrasts. Doing my best to stay as far away from that "its-X-but-Y" line, I would describe it as being in a coccoon within a desolate environment. There is a danger and a threat to the sound of the environment, but you are also protected from the worst of it. As if Björk's nurturing wisdom is keeping you from recognizing that there's an apocalypse outside. She's a warm fireplace in the midst of the harshest of winters. She can't change the weather, but she can protect you from it. I think that probably still counts as an X-but-Y line, but it's the best I've got.
If you aren't put off by beeps and boops (and in the year of our lord 2025, who is?) then this is an absolute must-listen. It's influence on alternative and electronic music is matched by very few, and it is one of those fantastic albums that manages to find that perfect spot of experimentalism where it isn't particularly difficult to listen, but still manages to feel fresh decades later. It's my favourite album of the decade hands down, and with the number of fantastic albums from the 90s, that is very high praise.
Jeff Buckley - Grace
Kind of like: Radiohead, Fiona Apple, Elliott Smith
Songs to try: Hallelujah; Lover, You Should Have Come Over; Grace
Jeff Buckley only got to make one album before his untimely death, and it just so happens to be one of the best albums of all time. It would be very easy too spend too much time on what could have been in this write-up given that context, but I would much rather spend my time talking about what was and leaving the hypotheticals to your imaginations.
If you have never heard of Grace, you have almost certainly heard a song off it. Jeff Buckley's rendition of Leonard Cohen's classic Hallelujah is held in the highest regard as one of the best covers of a song that probably has thousands of musicians with their own renditions. It is, in my opinion, the absolute best respresentation of the song and Jeff Buckley's unique qualities at the same time. It is tender, simple, and beautiful. In true Leonard Cohen fashion, it is perfect in part because of it's flaws (I always love to hear that harsh note he plays after one of the refrains that sounds like he nearly hit the wrong string but adjusted at the last microsecond, resulting in a short, sharp twang). The song does so much with nothing but a guitar and a single voice, its almost mesmerizing.
But there is so much more to this album than Hallelujah. Lover You Should Have Come Over is similar, but this time being an original song; then there are rockers like Eternal Life and So Real; and songs that blend the two styles beautifully like the title track, Grace. It's unfortunate that we lost an artist like this so soon, but we are beyond lucky to have something as beautiful as the album he left behind.
If you've ever listened to the melancholic alternative artists of the 90s and appreciated their lyricism but wished the sound got more aggressive at times, this album is for you. It's poetic and tender, but not passive. A rock album of sorts, but one that subverts all expectations of what rock music stands for. Every music fan should listen to it eventually, so I highly recommend you add it to your list if you haven't listened already. And if you're a soft rock fan, make sure it's right at the top.
Wu-Tang Clan - Enter The Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)
Kind of like: Nas, Madvillain, Lupe Fiasco
Songs to try: C.R.E.A.M. (Cash Rules Everything Around Me), Tearz, Protect Ya Neck
Most of the time I find that hip-hop albums take a little while for me to fully appreciate (probably because I only really heard the less poppy stuff for the first time a few years ago) but this was very clearly special from the very first listen for me. Of course most albums tend to grow on you over time, at least that's my experience, so it's not like this is my favourite album or anything having not had much time with it, but its an album I felt like I instantly "got". Like I immediately understood why it was held in such high regard, even if I didn't feel it yet.
I think the thing I appreciated most about this album is the most obviously unique thing about it: the lineup. Each of these guys are some of the best the genre has to offer at what they do, and the fact they all came together to create such an aggressively dogged and single-minded album is truly special. It really helps to create the vibe of a musical militia. A force of nature bursting through your headphones and speakers.
It took me way too long to get around to this album. If you're getting into hip-hop (or have otherwise somehow managed to miss this), don't make the mistake I did. This album is worthy of every bit of hype it gets. It should be in the first ten or so hip-hop albums you listen to. If you've already listened to ten, make it your next.
Nas - Illmatic
Kind of like: MF DOOM, Wu-Tang Clan
Songs to try: NY State of Mind, It Ain't Hard to Tell, Life's a Bitch
I'm not sure if it's worse that I only heard Enter The Wu-Tang this year or that I only got around to this album for this post. I couldn't for the life of me tell you why though. I had heard a song from this album a while back (NY State of Mind, I believe) and remember being blown away by Nas' ability to paint a full picture, to set a scene in my imagination, while somehow still maintaining a pleasing rhyme scheme and flow.
I think that is what makes this album truly special: Nas' storytelling is, in my experience, unmatched in the genre, and he manages to accomplish that without sacrificing the surface level enjoyability of the album. His flow is good, the beats are fun, and the rhyme scheme is incredibly pleasing, but I don't think I've ever seen a rappers lyrics as much as I heard or read them before, and that was very much the case on even my first listen of this album.
It's held in extremely high regard by hip-hop fans and artists as one of the best albums of all time, and while I don't personally see that, I absolutely agree that it's special. It's a very impressive album.
Radiohead - OK Computer
Note: since writing this, I found out that a portion of Radiohead's tour proceeds will go to Doctors Without Borders. This is obviously great, and I felt it was worth mentioning, given the substance of the write-up, but my broader point remains much the same, so I don't think a rewrite is necessary.
Jonny Greenwood and Thom Yorke have been cowardly and complicit in the genocide of the Palestinian people, which has allowed Israel to use them to whitewash that genocide.
Jonny Greenwood broke the PACBI boycott of the Israeli cultural sector by collaborating with Israeli musician Dudu Tassa, who has performed for, and given out guitars to IDF soldiers. That cultural sector often refuses to criticize the genocide (at best calling for peace, but never making any hint at reparations or consequences), acts as a distraction for Israelis as it happens, and implicitly strengthens the reputation and soft power of Israel on the global stage while not offset by explicit criticism.
Thom Yorke has been extremely defensive in his passive position for years, and only made a statement of any substance this summer, where he sat on the fence, denouncing the current government in Israel, and in doing so failing to recognize (or at least communicate) the genocidal mission that is inherent to the founding of a religious ethno-state. Later in that statement, he also criticizes Hamas for the October 7th attacks and for keeping hostages, which while fair in a vaccuum, when taken in the context in which it actually exists it only serves to downplay the harm Israel have caused. The October 7th attacks should not be defended, but to bring it up as he did makes it sound like an equally harmful operation to the systematic murder of Palestinians, if not a downright justification for a genocide. Those two evils are not remotely close to equal in motive, action, or consequence.
And regarding the hostages, in an ideal world they would be returned, but in the messy world we live in those hostages may be the only reason Palestinians get any reprieve from the relentless attacks on their lives and their dignities. Hostages are held as a bargaining chip to end the attacks. A bargain that Israel are unwilling to entertain. Israel have often decided they would rather continue to kill innocents in Palestine than receive their hostages. That's why those hostages are being held.
If there is any doubt about how useful their statements were in combatting the genocide, you only need to look at how Israeli media outlets have covered the story. The media apparatus of the genocidal state paint Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood as heroes pushing back against "radical" opposition. There is little chance of my voice ever reaching them, but if it did I would want them to reflect on that. I would want them to think more about how that made them feel, and less about how awful it is that people expect them to make sacrifices to support the movement against these atrocities.
If you're reading this and are at all frustrated that I'm not talking about the music, I am too. I used to love Radiohead, but having tried to listen to this album for this post, I found myself unable to focus on the music given the abysmal non-stances made by the band's two most prominent members in light of the clearest, most objectionable widely-reported moment in post-WW2 politics.
I started this blog because I believe music is powerful. And so it stands to reason that that power can be used in harmful ways, and while I don't believe those Radiohead members joining the boycott would single-handedly end the genocide (no single action can, short of the dissolution of the Israeli state or the completion of that genocide), every action helps. Putting a Palestine flag in your usernames online won't save Palestinians, but it helps. Getting out and protesting your government's role in the genocide won't end it, but it helps. And using this opportunity to talk about the genocide instead of music by a band complicit in that genocide won't do much, but it helps.
Final thoughts on the 90s
Although I came into this feeling underwhelmed by the variety of the albums on this list (and still am underwhelmed by it, really), the quality of these albums might be the highest yet for me. With the exception of the Death album, I absolutely love every one of these albums. It is probably the group of ten that included most albums that I already knew I loved going in, and I also came away with two new favourites in Love Deluxe and Illmatic. It's especially interesting because if you asked me a few months ago I would have told you I thought the 90s were "just okay", but this has given me something to think about there, not just because of what's here but because of what didn't make it too.
These introductions are about to get a lot more difficult to write. As much as I would love to be able to sum up every decade in a neat way, the modern music landscape that has at this point been more or less finalized, is just so broad that there is little to bring it all together. One thing that does seem to define the 80s though, in contrast to previous decades, is the size of everything. All the albums here command your attention and, while they all do something different with it, they also all share the quality of being maximalist. Of not shying away from excess. This is where the final piece of the modern music puzzle was added: this is where music became fun and playful.
Quick interruption before we get into the meat of the post, as usual, you can find this post better formatted on my website. You can also get access to my posts as soon as they're published instead of waiting for me to have the time to adapt it to a Tumblr post. That being said, all the words are the same there as they are here, so if you'd prefer to stay here, that should be totally fine
Sade - Diamond Life
Kind of like: SZA, Luther Vandross, Marvin Gaye
Songs to try: Smooth Operator, When Am I Going to Make a Living?, Hang On to Your Love
I won't say that this album is the biggest surprise of the project so far because I knew going in that Sade was a big deal commercially and critically, but it is certainly the biggest hit amongst the albums I'm not familiar with up until this point. It is extremely rare for me to listen to an artist for the first time and just get it but how could I not in this case? Sade is such a confident and talented vocalist, and her lyrics have that strange blend of personal and small-scale stakes with that feeling that it implicitly represents the culture of a place and time (in this case London in the 80s). It paints a picture of material excess but emotional poverty: the Diamond Life, you might say.
I would be remiss to not follow up that previous observation with a musical one, as the sound of this album couldn't be more in line with the theme of surface level excess and underlying emotional yearning. Sade's classy, smooth vocals, the saxophone dancing atop the songs, even the synths that sound bright but hollow, it all creates an atmosphere of luxurious emptiness, as if Sade is a singer in an upscale establishment pleading with a distracted, uninterested crowd to move their focus from economic to personal growth.
There are a lot of people who I could very confidently recommend this album to, but I think it would particularly appeal to people who like slower, more thoughtful pop music. Whether that's the raw sound of Adele's ballads, the slightly artsier, slow cuts from The 1975's discography, or even the sad girl stuff if you aren't opposed to something a little more hopeful, I think there is a chance that you wouldn't have heard Sade's stuff yet and would really enjoy it.
The Smiths - The Queen Is Dead
Kind of like: The Cure, The Stone Roses, New Order
Songs to try: There Is a Light That Never Goes Out, Bigmouth Strikes Again, The Queen Is Dead
I've known and loved this album for a while now. It was one of the first albums to really define my taste in music when I started to really discover stuff for myself. Because of that, I might be blinded by sentimentality here, but I truly believe this is a 10. It defined an era both sonically and culturally. Similarly to how Sade's album seemed to implicitly represent the culture within the posher parts of London at the time, this album seems to represent a more northern, proletarian perspective. One of waning hope in dire times. Put together they really demonstrate the stark contrast between the haves and have-nots in the country at the time.
Back to this album specifically though, while it never speaks explicitly about culture or politics (at least outside of a somewhat explicit critique of the monarchy in the title track), it is present across the entire album in it's general mood and essence. When it is sincere, it speaks of a severe lack of belonging or hope. A loneliness, and seemingly eternal lack of direction in life. When it isn't sincere, it has a wry, cynical, sarcastic sense of humour that refuses to believe in anything.
I guess, to sum it up, the album paints a complete picture of hopelessness and depression. One that doesn't just focus on how it responds to the bad, but also how it twists the good and neutral into negatives too, or failing that, rejects any potential optimism that can arise. I think that is what has made (and continues to make) this album so attractive to people who themselves are struggling: it paints a full picture. Depression isn't as simple as everything being awful all the time. Sometimes, oftentimes even, there is a dark pleasure taken in the killing of hope. A sense that your pessimism makes you smarter and better prepared than others, and there is often a joy in that belief.
I think if this album is for you it will have found you already, but just in case it hasn't, if you like indie music at all, enjoy britpop, or any number of related genres, this is a must-listen. If you are interested in listening to indie music and its new to you, this is one of the greatest, most quintessential indie albums ever made. If you enjoy the somewhat comedic, depressing lyricism of the likes of Elliott Smith, Phoebe Bridgers, or any other artists inspired by those two, I highly recommend The Smiths in general. If you are depressed and looking to understand yourself, I'd recommend therapy, but this album will also help and will be a lot cheaper. Again, maybe this is just the sentimentality speaking, but I believe this album is damn near best-in-class regarding everything it represents. It's a masterpiece.
Kate Bush - The Dreaming
Kind of like: Björk, St. Vincent, David Bowie
Songs to try: Sat In Your Lap, Pull Out the Pin, Suspended In Gaffa
To this day I don't think there has been a popstar to match the strangeness of Kate Bush, and this album is a testament to the power of her avant-garde approach to pop music. The music manages to often be rewarding to listen to while still being incredibly unique and almost alien. It sounds as if the songs started off as Dua Lipa-esque, extremely fun pop music that sticks to convention to be as immediately rewarding as possible, but which it's creators tried to sabotage with awkward vocal takes and an out there sonic palette made up of some really strange sound effects. The thing is though, it's difficult to sabotage something that is amazing at it's core. The result is, as I mentioned, an album that is extremely rewarding despite itself.
Stranger still is the fact that, unlike some successful weirdos of the past (Bowie comes to mind especially), it's difficult with Kate Bush to identify the poppy aspects of the music. The feeling is there, but it doesn't feel like any aspect of it is in any way a compromise. To clarify, I don't think that compromise is inherently bad, and part of what I really appreciate about Bowie is his instinct for when and when not to compromise, but the fact that something so uncompromised doesn't just exist, but that it is so widely known and adored is so encouraging, and makes for an amazing listen for pop heads and freaks alike.
Metallica - Ride the Lightning
Genre: Metal
Song to try: For Whom the Bell Tolls
It's probably a little too late for a critical failure of this format to occur to me, but I noticed one as I was trying to find something to say about this album: if I'm unfamiliar with a certain type of music, not only am I likely to struggle when trying to understand an album's appeal, but I also won't be able to fall back on praising it for it's influence.
It's not that I don't see anything good about this album -- for one thing I didn't expect to praise a metal album for the noise it didn't make, but a lot of songs here make great use of silence, where the chugging guitars feel even more impactful because they keep cutting off, and I also just really like For Whom the Bell Tolls for some reason -- but it doesn't come together in a complete package for me in a way that I can understand and describe to would-be fans. There is a good chance this is just down to my inexperience with the genre of metal, but regardless of the reason, it makes it hard to write about it in a way that is in any way useful. So full disclosure, the other Metallica write-up on this list is also going to be pretty bad and unhelpful.
Michael Jackson - Thriller
Kind of like: Prince, Bruno Mars, The Weeknd
Songs to try: Any/all of them except The Girl Is Mine
I've definitely spoken about how crazy this album is before. It's a strange listen as a full project because it doesn't really tie together at all, but still works as a cohesive project for some reason. My best guess as to why that is, is simply that the quality of (almost) all the songs on this album is so high that it ties them together. I'm not particularly convinced by that theory -- greatest hits albums exist, after all, and very few of those feel cohesive -- but it's my best explanation for why an album that traverses pop, funk, rock, and more in 9 tracks with no overarching theme whatsoever can be this seamless a listen.
This is not something I intend to make a habit of, but it is absolutely called for here: I'm going to write out the tracklist to demonstrate how insane the quality of this album's songs is...
Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'
Baby Be Mine
The Girl Is Mine
Thriller
Beat It
Billie Jean
Human Nature
P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)
The Lady in My Life
Now, not all of them are 10s for me, but barring one song, I could understand why someone might feel that any or all of those songs are 10s. There are extremely few albums where that applies, and even fewer where each song could be someone's favourite of all time (except for that one song). If albums were judged solely on the quality of the tracks within it, this would be the best album ever made, hands down, no contest.
Metallica - Master of Puppets
Genre: Metal
Songs to try: Master of Puppets; Damage, Inc.
Of all the bands to have two albums make this list it just had to be the one I don't understand the appeal of.
That being said, I did get a little more out of this one. During the first album I was disappointed to not pick up on any clear message of the album, which seemed like a waste given the emotional power of metal as a genre. I can confidently say that this album doesn't struggle with that issue, but it is kind of one-note, and doesn't make any statements that I was particularly impressed by. It's not that I'm pro-war, I agree with the statements, but they all feel surface level. It feels like someone saying murder is bad. Sure, I agree, but this doesn't really accomplish anything.
I'm holding out hope that one day this will click for me beyond the surface level, but until then, I have frustratingly little to say about this album, negative or positive.
Kate Bush - Hounds of Love
Kind of like: Björk, St. Vincent, David Bowie
Songs to try: Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God), Hounds of Love, Cloudbusting
Kind of like: Björk, St. Vincent, David Bowie
Songs to try: Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God), Hounds of Love, Cloudbusting
I've already spoken about what makes Kate Bush so special earlier, and all of that applies here, but this album specifically is just dripping with that X-factor of an album made when its artist is at their very best. It sounds like a classic in both the general quality of the songs, but also in it's ability to sum up a legendary artist. If you are looking to understand Kate Bush, look no further than this, because this is her at her experimental, ethereal best.
The only thing that I can think to criticize the album for is it's lack of cohesion, but if it were to be cohesive I don't think it would be such a great representation of Kate Bush as an artist. What makes her so special is her willingness to try something that is totally out there, and an album full of that will naturally lack cohesion, as the artist begins to defy the expectations of not just the broader musical landscape, but of the album itself.
That might make it sound like it's a prog rock album, or some weird electronic work like some of Björk's stuff or Kid A, but the best thing about it is how much of a pop album this still is. Much like the previous Kate Bush album on this list, it sounds almost like a lot of the stuff that was really popular at the time, but Kate Bush takes that sound and distorts it to her needs. It means that most of the time it retains it's appeal to the average listener (although admittedly not always), but it is also as powerful as music made around a statement. It is exceptionally impressive in how it is able to toe that line.
Talking Heads - Remain in Light
Kind of like: David Bowie, Chic, New Order
Songs to try: Once In a Lifetime, Born Under Punches (The Heat Goes On), Crosseyed and Painless
Kind of like: David Bowie, Chic, New Order
Songs to try: Once In a Lifetime, Born Under Punches (The Heat Goes On), Crosseyed and Painless
This is another album that I've known and loved for a while, even if I don't love it quite as much as the album that followed it. To pick a favourite between the two is to split hairs though, both of them are exceptional, and there's little doubt that Remain In Light, for whatever reason, was able to cut through and influence culture a lot more than Speaking in Tongues. I'm not sure why the latter didn't break through to quite the same extent, but why this album did is no mystery to me.
Talking Heads have a great ability, similar to Kate Bush but with a different manifestation, to make something wholly unique, but still familiar in all the ways that matter. Here, we have a funky sound that is incredibly awkward. Those two things seem at odds when you consider the best funk acts around, who all have a confidence about them, whether suave, funny, or jubilant. Talking Heads on the other hand, are making funk for misfits, outcasts, and weirdos. Of course that isn't to gatekeep the sound, it's open to anyone who is willing to approach it with an open mind, but the fact that it is awkward at it's core makes it a uniquely inviting experience to the weirdos among us.
Lyrically, David Byrne switches his focus very slightly from the absurdity of the life of individuals in the west from previous albums, to a broader absurdity, a cultural, systemic, and cruel absurdity, touching on the ideas of colonialism, genocide, beauty standards and the absurdity of the pursuit of them. The only real exception is their biggest hit, Once In a Lifetime, which is instead about the individual experience of capitalism and consumerism.
The Cure - Disintegration
Kind of like: Joy Division, Siouxsie & The Banshees, Slowdive
Songs to try: Fascination Street, Prayers for Rain, Pictures of You
Yet another album I've known and loved for a while. Metallica albums aside, the 80s have been very good to me.
This album one of the most emotionally powerful albums I know. It's title tells you exactly what you're getting into. It depicts the steady disintegration of not just a relationship, but the man that has lost it. Gradually the album becomes more and more hopeless, the writing portrays a person who is more and more unable to express themselves in the right way, and as the desperation grows, so does the distance between him and the one he loves. He begins to turn to dishonesty and seemingly manipulation to grasp onto a relationship that he cares so deeply about that you begin to get the impression he cares more about the relationship than either of the people in it.
It is a brutal concept and the music backs that up with an oppressive soundscape that somehow also feels laissez-faire. It has an inevitable quality to it, perhaps due in part to the repetitive but never boring rhythms of the songs here, as well as the long introductions which make it feel like you're waiting for a geyser to explode with water. It feels like a natural, inevitable force that you are interacting with on it's own terms. The result is an album that appears to have a massive power over you. An album that you feel helpless in the presence of.
It is a very difficult album, emotionally speaking, but if you are in a position to bear it, there aren't many albums better than this. I think there may only be one that is as emotionally impactful. As an introduction to goth rock, this is a great shout. If you've already been introduced to goth rock but not this album, this is a great shout. If you want to listen to something that will fuck you up a little, this is a great shout. Hell, even if you've heard it before but it's been a while, I highly recommend a relisten.
Prince & The Revolution - Purple Rain
Kind of like: Bad by Michael Jackson, Speaking In Tongues by Talking Heads, Queen
Songs to try: Purple Rain, Let's Go Crazy, Darling Nikki
And yet another one I've known for ages, although I haven't loved it for so long.
Never has it felt so sacriligeous picking the "kind of like"s. There are some albums that feel like a religious experience, as though they are evidence of some divine intervention. As if they weren't made, but passed down by a god of music fully formed to be performed by someone of great importance. This album is the finest example of that. It blends funk, pop, and rock into something totally awe-inspiring in a way that makes you want to celebrate life itself. The effect is so strong that, despite my usual reservations regarding explicitly religious music, I can't help but love a song as explicit as I Would Die 4 U. It just feels like "of course there's a religious song on here" because what are they going to make something like the Sistine Chapel and not dedicate it to something greater than themselves? Whether I believe in it or not, it would be strange for them to not do that.
I'm not sure there really are words I can use to describe the enormity of this album as an experience, and the importance of listening to it as a music fan of any variety. It might not click immediately, but when it does, it feels as though it has changed something within you. As if you will take this album with you for the rest of your life in some small way. I strongly recommend it to everyone. It's one of the most talented musicians ever at their most confident and most proficient. Even if it's not really your thing, you are likely to get something out of this.
Final thoughts on the 80s
Most of this decade was made up of albums I already knew and loved, so frankly this didn't do a lot for my goals going into it, but it did introduce me to Sade, which has been my favourite discovery of the entire project. I think there is something to be said here for the number of great albums that didn't make the list too, though. I was very surprised by a few omissions, and I think that speaks to the size of the explosion of music in the 80s. It was truly impressive how much great stuff came out in this decade, and the quality was exceptional too. It was a very enjoyable decade to go through, even if it wasn't particularly enlightening for me specifically.
The 1970s, in terms of broader musical shifts and trends, is a pretty low key decade for the art form of music. But what it lacks in experimentation or new genres and styles, it makes up for in the cultural impact of the music that did come out and make a splash. I think there is one album here that I hadn't heard of going into this project and that is the only album that I wouldn't be able to argue is an absolute classic. It isn't a radical time in music, it would be disingenuous to sell it as such, but it is absolutely a time of great artistic mastery nonetheless. So let's talk about some masterpieces.
Note: As usual, this post was written for my website, chaosincurate.blog, and is formatted better there, as a result of my simply having more tools over there. If you want to read it here on Tumblr, that's perfectly fine, all the words will be the same. But if you're willing to check out the website, I would greatly appreciate it. And if you subscribe to the blog over there you'll get a notification when a new post goes live there, which is usually a little bit sooner than when it comes here. Thanks!
Nick Drake - Pink Moon
Kind of like: Bob Dylan, Elliott Smith
Songs to try: Pink Moon, Things Behind the Sun
This is easily the strangest of the albums I've talked about so far. Not necessarily by virtue of what it is, but rather what it isn't. I'm not particularly familiar with folk and singer-songwriter stuff -- it's not my favourite genre, though I do like some stuff from it and am aware of some of the more popular artists and albums -- but I would have said that they are defined by their lyricism first and foremost. This album, though, doesn't really focus all that much on lyrics compared to the similar albums that I've written about for this project so far. That's not to say that what is said isn't interesting -- it definitely is -- its just that not much is said to begin with. A lot of the songs are really short, and some are dominated by instrumentals.
All that being said though, that isn't a failure of the album. If it were, it wouldn't be noteworthy. There are plenty of albums that fall short of it's genre's expectations. The strange part is the fact that the album instead relies on very minimalist, folky instrumentals to carry so much of its meaning, and that it succeeds in doing so. That aspect of the album is as mind-boggling as it is awe-inspiring, and is absolutely the standout feature of the record to me.
In many ways this album is the greatest testament to musical minimalism I've heard to date. It is a strange listen, and one that takes a second to adjust to, but when you do it's really quite a remarkable thing to behold. It's an obvious album to recommend to fans of the genre, but I also think that people who really like grand landscapes in music to become engulfed in will get a lot out of this album, and may be surprised by Nick Drake's ability to do that with so few musical elements.
Joni Mitchell - Blue
Kind of like: Bob Dylan, Leonard Cohen
Songs to try: Blue, California, The Last Time I Saw Richard
Joni Mitchell brings us back to very familiar ground for folk/singer-songwriter music, with an album that excels at the fundamentals instead of rewriting them, and man does she excel here.
The unique characteristic of Blue that stands out most to me is the way that the vocal melodies seem to be bent to fit the words Joni Mitchell had in mind instead of the far more common opposite approach, without ever feeling awkward. Something about her style allows you to notice the fact that, at points, the melodies don't seem to quite fit, but that never becomes a fault of the album. Maybe its just that clear that the lyrics are worth it, or maybe it contributes to (and benefits from) the conversational, confessional feel that permeates this album. Whatever it is, it does wonders for the artistic identity of this album, and it makes it resonate all the more because of it too.
Another interesting element to this album is its relationship with sadness. As you might imagine given the name of the project, its themes are pretty dour, and thats nothing new. But something I really appreciate about the lyrics here is that it doesn't wallow in that sadness for a moment. The album exists within sadness, but with the goal and desire of leaving it and with mind paid to better times of the past too. It may sound like a small thing, but so much of the music that explores sadness doesn't seem to mention or even allude to happiness, and when it is done, it feels a lot more sincere and real while also making the sadness more impactful by contrast.
If you're a fan of folk/singer-songwriter music, you've heard this album already. If you're looking to become a fan, this album may well rival Bob Dylan as the go-to starting point for explorers of the genre.
Stevie Wonder - Innervisions
Genre: Soul, funk
Songs to try: Higher Ground, Living for the City, Visions
I'm sure I've talked before about albums being difficult to talk about, and feeling as if there isn't much to say about them, but it is particularly frustrating when that happens with an album that you really like and appreciate. Unfortunately, I'm finding that to be the case here.
The issue definitely isn't with the quality of the music, which is incredible throughout it's entire runtime. I think its more about the sense of purpose this album has, or rather doesn't have, as far as I can tell. By which I mean most albums at this point in time that are highly acclaimed seem to have something very unique about them, something that only that album did up to that point, something rare, or some really interesting theme that they stick to. Here though, Stevie Wonder doesn't seem to feel compelled to explore anything new and instead sticks to refining the fundamentals. And those fundamentals are expertly refined, and, again, it is a great album, but it's a difficult album to discuss at length.
Maybe there is something about this album that I'm missing, in which case, feel free to let me know, but as far as I can tell, this album is mostly a great representation of soul and funk, arguably one of the best, so if you're wanting to dive into music in that realm, this is a very good call for that.
King Crimson - Red
Kind of like: black midi, Pink Floyd
Song to try: One More Red Nightmare
I got real unlucky with this and Innervisions being back to back, because yet again I find myself understanding why an album here is great, but failing to understand its appeal to the extent of it being one of the top 10 albums of a pretty strong decade. For a notable example, I was surprised that an album like Black Sabbath's Paranoid didn't make the cut, which feels wrong considering albums like this feel less significant to me (although I can't speak to my personal preference having only listened to Red at time of writing).
Frustratingly too, all I can think to speak on with this album applies to In the Court of the Crimson King from the last decade way better. It's paranoid, and sprawling, while demonstrating a patience and a comfort with long instrumentals, but if you were looking for that, their previous album does a better job in my opinion, and I'm not sure how this album would appeal to someone in a way that Crimson King doesn't also do. Maybe there is something to be said for this album being more of a straightforward rock sound, but that feels like a minor deviation.
Unfortunately, I feel like I've failed to fully understand this album's appeal, so for the second time in a row, take this with a grain of salt and if you find someone who loves this album, listen to them over me, but I would personally only recommend this to someone who has listened to Crimson King (and maybe their later album Discipline too) and wants more from the band.
Miles Davis - Bitches Brew
Kind of like: The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Kind of Blue, The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady
Song to try: Bitches Brew
Now this one I get, even if it'll take more listens to fully digest. This album, even to this day, remains very difficult to explain. It is an experimental and psychedelic album that is such a departure from the Miles Davis sound I was used to that, for the longest time, while I was somewhat familiar with both albums it hadn't really registered with me that Bitches Brew and Kind of Blue were made by the same person. Of course having properly listened to both I can see some resemblance, but even now I understand how I could make such a strange oversight. I genuinely believe that most moments on this album sound more like a song from Jimi Hendrix or some other psychedelic rock artist. The classic Miles Davis fingerprint is always there, but you have to be looking for it at times, whereas the experimentation and deviation jumps out at you constantly.
I think if I were to try to sum up the album's identity in a sentence it would be "jazz embracing modernity on its own terms". The album feels modern, even to this day to some extent, but it doesn't feel like it compromises the essence of jazz to do so, which as we've come to find out in the years since this album came out, is no easy task and it takes a genius with a strong connection to the genre and its culture to navigate that challenge as gracefully as Miles Davis does here.
So when it comes to the question of who this album is for, its for anyone who likes jazz, but especially those who felt a disconnect with the classics on the basis of them showing their age. It has been 55 years since this has dropped and this classic barely has a visible wrinkle on it's face.
Pink Floyd - The Dark Side of the Moon
Kind of like: David Bowie, The Beatles, Led Zeppelin
Songs to try: Money, The Great Gig In the Sky, Time
Okay, I'm going to need you to bear with me on this one, because at first it might seem like I'm saying something that I don't mean to, but my feelings on this album are difficult to describe.
Growing up a music fan in the UK, I saw this album cover everywhere. I was always hearing about how otherwordly the music was, and how the cover was a perfect representation of it, how it marked a massive turning point in rock music, etc. I even heard that its supposed to line up really well with The Wizard of Oz, I think. The point is, especially here in the UK I'm sure, this album isn't just an album, its a cultural symbol. A cultural symbol which, ironically eclipses the music itself.
Despite that though, I still hadn't listened to it up until I listened to it a few days to a week ago as of writing this, for this series specifically. So when I finally did, it was a very strange experience. I'm not sure exactly what I was expecting out of the album, but it's almost as if I was shocked to find that it was, at the end of the day, just an album, like any other. Made of wiggly air and words.
Now for the clarification, that isn't really a reflection on the album's actual quality. I think the issue is after all this time and all I've heard about it, I expected it to extend beyond the confines of an album somehow, but it obviously doesn't do that. After a few listens now, I've found I've progressively started to appreciate it more and more as I distance myself from those weird expectations. Even when I first listened I wasn't even close to disliking it, but there was a fog over it that is clearing more and more with every listen.
So who would I recommend this to? Basically, anyone that is interested in rock music. Long time fans of the genre that missed it, or people just starting out, it's a must-listen, even if only to have an opinion on it, but just know that your first listen might be affected by the weight of historic cultural significance.
David Bowie - The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars
Kind of like: Velvet Underground, Declan McKenna, The Clash
Songs to try: Moonage Daydream, Starman, Hang on to Yourself
I've known and loved this album for years at this point, so when I saw that I was writing about this next I thought it'd be a cakewalk. I know the album like the back of my hand at this point, and I've been in this sort of musical sphere for a while, so I was feeling confident that I'd be able to speak about this easily, but I found myself struggling at the very first hurdle: What other stuff does this album sound like? Even now I'm not confident with the artists listed, and after looking specifically for others, I'm not really comfortable drawing strong parallels to any of them. That is very odd for an album this old, influential, and familiar to me.
I think the thing about this album is that Bowie takes aspects from a lot of disparate sources, and has an acquiantanceship with musical convention (which applies across his career) which is just distant enough to leave an outstanding impression while also being easy to engage with. That acquiantanceship in particular helps him to become an incredibly influential musician, arguably creating, helping to create, or bringing into the mainstream several different genres over the course of his career while also avoiding total replication. Even going through the "Inspired by David Bowie" playlist on Apple Music, all of them take noticeable inspiration from him, but only a few really sound like him at all.
All that being said, this is yet another must-listen rock album. It's one of the first to really tie together any sort of narrative (even if it does so somewhat poorly) and it has a perfect, almost unnoticeable balance between having a retro sound and existing outside of time entirely. Its a really interesting listen, but it always stays simple too, which I think is the beauty of Bowie's music. Whatever level you enjoy it on, it will give you something.
Marvin Gaye - What's Going On
Kind of like: Stevie Wonder, Isaac Hayes
Songs to try: What's Going On, Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology), Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)
At it's core, What's Going On is a message of unity around simple truths as solutions to the worlds ills in the face of overcomplicated philosophies that undermine progress. That philosophy is present in the album's title and on the singer's face on the cover as much as it is in the music itself. And it is really quite impressive how well Marvin Gaye manages to sell you on this philosophy from a number of angles while rarely retreading ground.
This album suggests that civil rights matters are simple: we should just love and care for all as we'd care for one of our own; war is similarly simple: love ought to conquer hate; the climate crisis is simple: appproach the environment with care and responsibility. There are far more examples than just those too. In fact each track is its own acknowledgement of the simplicity of the solution to problems that we misrepresent as tricky.
The profound simplicity is easy to write off as only simplicity if you aren't paying attention, but this is absolutely one of those albums that give back everything you give it for the most part. If you approach it like an excellent piece of art and philosophy, it will reward you as such, but if you treat it like a dime a dozen soul album that extends itself beyond it's capabilities, that's all it will be.
As such, if you are in a position to treat this album with the reverence it deserves, I would highly recommend it. If you don't think you can approach it with an open and curious mind though, I would leave it be. I can absolutely see it feeling like a waste of time in that case. Maybe if you're new to the genre check out something by someone like the artists in the "kind of like" section first so you can engage properly with the music itself and not the broader genre, because that first listen could be the most important for this one.
Pink Floyd - Wish You Were Here
Kind of like: Led Zeppelin, Queen, David Bowie
Song to try: Shine On You Crazy Diamond, Pts. 1-5
Unlike the prior Pink Floyd album The Dark Side of the Moon, there was no adjustment period necessary for this album. Part of that is surely down to the fact that this album's reputation and popularity isn't nearly as overwhelming, but I also think it is just a far more cohesive album with a clear theme in mind that grounds the whole experience: the destructive nature of capitalist influence on art and artists.
Shine On You Crazy Diamond depicts a loved one being hollowed out by (it is implied) the industry that is attached to something he loves, which of course is infamously the story of the band's former frontman Syd Barrett. Then the next three tracks detail the rise of the band into the seedy heaven that is the music industry, from early idolization of rockstars from youth, to the seduction by shady and duplicitous record label execs, and finally a regretful reflection on the journey and how it's changed them. That then sets the stage for the final parts of Shine On You Crazy Diamond within a new context: one that understands the hollowed out artist may have been wise to have gotten out when they did.
Maybe I just haven't had enough time with their previous album, but this one felt so much clearer in it's meaning and it's purpose to me, and as a result I can understand the hype around it much more immediately. It's a powerful narrative by masters of their medium, and it fully deserves to be heralded as one of the best albums of the decade, if not all time. It is often indulgent, but never over-indulgent, and is one of the finest examples of a rock album that I can think of.
Stevie Wonder - Songs in the Key of Life
Kind of like: Michael Jackson, Luther Vandross
Songs to try: Sir Duke, I Wish, As
Since starting this blog, I have always tried to stay positive about albums and not really criticize them unless it was extremely necessary or hard to resist. And to be clear, I'm not sure I could really criticize this particular album if I wanted to, but it is interesting to note that, often, when I have a strong desire to criticize something it's for being too long and, despite this album being even longer than an album I have criticized for it's length on this blog, I absolutely love it and think it's length is absolutely warranted, finally proving its not size that matters, its how you use it.
Part of that is down to the other failings of that other album making it harder to get through, but part of it is also just that this (double) album actually has a reason to be this long. The quality of the music isn't sacrificed at all, for one, and you would have a hard time trimming this down to something more palatable without sacrificing an amazing song in the process. But there's also the nature of it claiming to be an album about something as large as life.
Now, I don't think you can call this a concept album about life, because frankly every song is about life in some way, but it does do some work to justify itself in that way. Most notably, the first half has a more pessimistic tone, then following the birth of a child in the first song from the second half it's as if the narrator percieves the world through the eyes of an optimistic child, or is suddenly imbued with a strong desire to make the world a better place.
I'm not sure my description of the change is spot on, but the point is there is some sense of cause and effect to the album, and a clear change in perspective from an individual in the first part of the album, to a parent and a member of something greater in the second. It's exactly what the album needed to give it an extra push that keeps it from being boring.
Although I've already said it a lot, I believe this is another instance where I'd recommend the album to pretty much anyone who is interested in music. It is a massive moment in music history and an absolute triumph within the art form. Simple as that.
Final thoughts on the 70s
On the previous post, I made a brief distinction between those who pioneered and those who perfected. Listening to the best this decade has to offer, I am of the belief that it had a shocking number of artists in the latter camp. Most albums on this list are near-perfect examples of the genres they inhabit: immortal classics that deserve to be remembered for the rest of time.
I'm particularly happy with this section of the It's About Time series because, with one exception, all these albums were albums that I didn't respect as much as I ought to have, or were new to me entirely and became a cherished part of my music history lexicon. It truly is about time I gave these albums the love they deserved. Roll credits.
The 1950s sowed the seeds of a tide shift. The landscape was still dominated by laid-back jazz, but the road began to fork in ways that would only become particularly apparent here in the next decade. In the 50s, pop music was essentially jazz with concessions, and rock music only existed in it's original form as rock 'n' roll. These genres had an indescribable level of influence on the music we hear today, but didn't yet resemble it. In the 60s the landscape became a lot more recognizable to a modern ear, with the rock explosion taking place and creating distinct subgenres beneath it's broad umbrella term of rock music. And it was very much a decade for rock music and folk, if Album of the Year is to be believed. We have legendary albums from legends like The Beatles, Bob Dylan, and Jimi Hendrix to name just a few, so what this decade may be lacking in variety it certainly doesn't appear to be lacking in quality. So let's dig into the best albums of the 60s and see if there's anything to be taken away from this highly creative time.
Before we get into the list, I'd like to bring attention to the original version of this post on my website. If you want to stick around here, that's fine, but the post on the website has some better formatting and navigation, specifically made for my writing, so it is the better experience if you're willing to leave Tumblr. Now back to the actual post.
Leonard Cohen - Songs of Leonard Cohen
Kind of like: Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Bright Eyes
Songs to try: So Long, Marianne; Suzanne; One of Us Cannot Be Wrong
I enjoyed most of the albums I listened to from the 50s, but I feel as though I was missing something like this the whole time: something with a lyrical focus and with something to say, and Songs of Leonard Cohen has plenty to say and says it all in such an interesting way. Going into this project, I was expecting to fill some gaps in my musical knowledge, but I wasn't expecting to have a radical change in opinion following a new perspective. I wasn't naive enough to think that new perspective wouldn't come as I listened to albums in the context of their time, I just never really found myself able to appreciate something in that way. Following a decade mostly made up of covers of jazz standards and entirely instrumental works, though, an essentially album made up of incredible poetry set to music was refreshing to say the least. It suddenly felt groundbreaking to hear an artist that cared about the words they sang.
That being said, something this lyrically dense is going to take a lot more time to fully understand, even if I can appreciate how rare this was at the time and actually enjoy the music for what it is. I have already had experiences where songs would suddenly click on the 5th listen while listening casually, and I expect that to keep happening for a little while. That being said, I do already have some appreciation for the level of lyricism on display, and can confidently recommend it to someone who, like myself, is drawn to music with a lyrical focus. That isn't to say the instrumentals are bad, of course, but much like how I never quite found myself resonating with a lot of the music of the 50s because lyrics weren't a priority, if you're mainly drawn to the musical elements of songs and albums, you may feel as though there's not enough to chew on here.
Isaac Hayes - Hot Buttered Soul
Genre: Soul, Progressive Soul
Song to try: Walk On By
This sort of thing is exactly why I wanted to do this series: this is one of the first soul albums I've ever heard. I don't know why I've neglected the genre for so long either. It's not like country where, in it's cultural ubiquity, I was able to determine that it wasn't my sort of thing. In fact, all my small interactions with soul music have been overwhelmingly positive. And yet, I hadn't sought it out on a more mindful level. What I can say, though, is that this is an excellent introduction and has me wanting to hear more.
Something to be mindful of regarding this album though: it's made up of only four, very long songs. That's a draw of the album for me, but I know that it is a fairly daunting thing to see for some. I can absolutely attest to their quality though and how well that time is spent. The only arguable exception, in my view, is the closer, By the Time I Get To Phoenix which opens with a monologue the length of a song in itself. I would argue that the monologue is both endearing and useful in setting the scene, even if it is a little indulgent in that respect. That being said, the fact the song includes the lines "I'm gonna moan now moans" should make up for any feelings that it wasn't worth the wait.
It is a fun album, that has something to say, and even if what that something is isn't particularly mind-blowing and the fun comes first, I for one think that makes for a great time, whether you're more about analysis or vibes.
If you're not put off by the length of the songs (and you really shouldn't be, it doesn't feel it's length at all) and you have some interest in some upbeat, funky soul music, I can highly recommend this, making it 2-for-2 this decade so far that have really impressed me.
Bob Dylan - Blonde On Blonde
Kind of like: Leonard Cohen, Bright Eyes, Joni Mitchell
Songs to try: I Want You, Visions of Johanna, Most Likely You'll Go Your Way (And I'll Go Mine)
This is where things get a tad controversial. I'm definitely not going to try to convince anyone that Bob Dylan isn't a great musician, or that this isn't a great album, but in my humble opinion, this album doesn't scream "one of the best to ever do it" to me, and that appears to be the regard in which this album is held amongst the general music fan public. Now that being said, there are a lot of songs that I feel do live up to that reputation, such as the songs in the songs to try section, along with a few others, but even then only a few really resonated with me personally.
I do have some praise for the album though, and I'm not sure whether this is due to some unmentioned remastering done in recent years because I can only find references to minimal, purely technical remasters for stereo mixes and the like, but the album sounds spectacular. Far more so than a lot of the music coming out alongside it. There are minimal imperfections (enough to give character, but never enough to frustrate), and the mix is perfectly balanced for the most part to create that ideal tapestry of sound.
Trying to figure out who to recommend this album to is tricky, because in theory it should very much appeal to me, but it doesn't. And if one of the most beloved albums from one of the most iconic songwriters to ever live doesn't appeal to me -- someone to whom lyrics are the most important aspect of music -- who should it appeal to? But then again, it is a beloved album, so clearly it must have merit that I am missing. My best guess is that I ought to recommend this album to someone who is like me and to just hope that my lack of connection is the product of some weird quirk of mine.
The Beatles - Revolver
Kind of like: Tame Impala, Elliott Smith
Songs to try: Eleanor Rigby; Tomorrow Never Knows; She Said, She Said
And the controversial takes don't end there. I swear I don't think this makes me cool or interesting, but I don't really like most of The Beatles' discography. At least the parts of the discography I've heard. There is a key exception to that on the album scale, and plenty of exceptions from song-to-song, but unfortunately Revolver isn't the example that comes to mind for the former.
It is a particularly strange experience, because the album seems split right down the middle between songs that are too primitive for me to find enjoyment in or too experimental. And I don't think I'm particularly picky in that regard, but as strange as it is for an album to represent the two polar opposite ways I might not enjoy it, that is what Revolver does.
I also mentioned that there are song-scale exceptions to my Beatles-neutrality though, and there are definitely a few of those here. Particularly Eleanor Rigby and Tomorrow Never Knows impressed me. The latter especially so for it's experimental-yet-satisfying vibe which hasn't been diminishged after nearly 60 years. The rest of the album though, left me underwhelmed, even if the worst description of my experience would be something along the lines of "fine" as opposed to anything outright negative, the reputation this album has exceeds my enjoyment of it.
In a similar case to Blonde on Blonde, I feel as though I should be within the target audience for an album like this (albeit to a lesser degree) so I'm not entirely sure who to recommend this to outside of "anyone who thinks they might enjoy it". It's an extremely broad and unsatisfying recommendation, but I can't give anything else in good faith while there is such a massive disparity in the way I see this album and the way most people do. Especially considering even I didn't have a bad time with it. Worst case scenario, you're like me and you spend a little over half an hour on an album that you just don't get the hype for. Even then, at least you have an opinion on one of the most acclaimed albums of all time. Even if it doesn't make you interesting to not love it as much as everyone else, it can at least make the discussions you have about it more interesting.
Bob Dylan - Highway 61 Revisited
Kind of like: Leonard Cohen, Bright Eyes, Joni Mitchell
Songs to try: Like a Rolling Stone, Tombstone Blues, Ballad of a Thin Man
To further complicate my relationship with Bob Dylan's music, this one hit. Big time. Maybe my personal opinion on the album still falls short of that of the general population, but in this case I found myself enjoying the album too much to bother considering the extent to which my opinion deviates from the general consensus.
I think a big part of why I enjoyed this album so much more than the other Dylan albums I've heard is the energy of it. It's not to say that Blonde on Blonde is lacking in energy, I don't think that's true, but it's a different energy to the one on display here. Here, the soundscape is plucky, youthful, vivacious, compared to the slightly different whimsical nature to his later album.
I'm sure it's a result of my greater interest, but I also found myself appreciating a lot more of the lyrics on this album than the lyrics on Blonde on Blonde. In particular lines like "swallow your pride, it will not kill you, it's not poison" from Tombstone Blues and "I wanna be your lover, I don't wanna be your boss" from It Takes a Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry stick out to me in particular as one-liners, but Ballad of a Thin Man, Desolation Row, and of course Like a Rolling Stone are also excellent examples of a more drawn out lyrical masterclass.
My recommendation for this album is essentially the same as Blonde on Blonde, just more confidently this time. If you are particularly drawn to lyrics in music, you'll love this. Particularly if you find that straightforward folk music is sometimes a little too stripped back for your liking.
John Coltrane - The Love Supreme
Genre: Jazz
Song to try: A Love Supreme, Pt. 2: Resolution
I think this is the album that finally allowed me to get jazz, and to an extent all instrumental music. I started off as frustrated as ever, with Acknowledgement being as difficult a listen for me as any other moment on my jazz journey thus far. Everything felt disconnected and hard to grasp onto. But that didn't last long. Once the album had moved onto Resolution, it all started making sense. The album started to click into place, I noticed that there was a theme and a narrative developing and that feeling of disconnection and turbulence I felt in the first song was very intentional.
I noticed the titles and the way the album was unfolding musically and put together that this is an album about love and conflict resolution. I doubt that is an impressive thing to pick up on, it seems obvious now that I've recognized it, but its the first time I've actually noticed a theme in an instrumental album as opposed to just feelings or vibes. At the time of writing, I don't know if that was a one-off with this album or whether this album has made everything click in my mind, but I'm very happy to be able to say that I've enjoyed and understood an instrumental album on a deep level. That alone has made this series worth it to me.
It is because of that experience that I recommend this album to anyone who may have heard jazz before and struggled to connect with it, as I have. It should really be your second album after Kind of Blue in my opinion.
The Jimi Hendrix Experience - Electric Ladyland
Kind of like: Cream, The Rolling Stones
Songs to try: All Along the Watchtower, Voodoo Chile, 1983... (A Merman I Should Turn to Be)
In many ways my thoughts on this album are very similar to my thoughts on Revolver, with some slight variations. Both albums feel split between time periods: the time they existed in, and the relative future. The main difference is simply that I prefer the Jimi Hendrix brand of what is now retro compared to that of The Beatles, but another factor is that Jimi Hendrix's leaps into the future don't leap quite as far. It makes for an album that is far more palatable in my opinion, because there are moments on Revolver that feel like they're pushing boundaries even today (which is good in isolation) but then there are moments that feel kitschy and outdated. That's a whiplash-inducing experience, but here both poles of that experience are brought way closer together and the experience is a lot smoother as a result.
As you may expect from what I've written there, many of my personal highlights come from the more experimental moments (notably the ones in the songs to try section) but I'd like to call attention to some of the songs that show their age a little more because, as I mentioned, I quite enjoy Jimi Hendrix's brand of retro. Songs like Crosstown Traffic and Rainy Day, Dream Away are sitting at the intersection of retro primitivism and interesting modernism and it allows me, personally, to enjoy the endearing aspects of classic music while also giving me something more to chew on. Much like Hendrix's biggest hit, All Along the Watchtower, he takes primitive elements and propels them as far into the future as he can, turning it into an experimental, guitar-led masterpiece in the process.
King Crimson - In the Court of the Crimson King
Kind of like: Pink Floyd, black midi
Songs to try: 21st Century Schizoid Man, Epitaph
This is probably my favourite album of all the ones I've listened to for this project so far, and when I saw that this was amongst the albums that was next up to be listened to, I knew it was about to get good. I had already listened to this album before, so I knew going in that this was an album of musical epics. And every other song on this album is an absolute paranoid masterpiece.
Chances are you've already heard at least a sample of 21st Century Schizoid Man, but it's likely if you haven't listened to this album yet that you're unaware of Epitaph or In the Court of the Crimson King. I highly recommend you address that by listening to this album if you're at all into prog rock. Not just because those songs are amazing either -- although with them making up three fifths of the album it wouldn't be totally insane to listen to it just for those songs -- the other two songs are also great additions and the whole album feels so impressively timeless. It genuinely feels as though it would be an amazing album if it was released today, or even ten years from now. It's something to behold. Even with the knowledge when I first listened to it that it was on the older side, I was under the impression it was an album from the mid 80s at least, and that is incredibly impressive. I genuinely can't think of an album that is so timeless.
As you can probably imagine, this is a wholehearted recommendation. Particularly if you're into rock music of pretty much any sort. For something so experimental, it is extremely broad in its appeal, I think. If you're a rock fan who somehow hasn't heard anything on this list, I think this is my highest recommendation. Even with the classic Jimi Hendrix album competing with it. This is an amazing album.
The Beatles - Abbey Road
Kind of like: Tame Impala, Led Zeppelin
Songs to try: Come Together, Here Comes the Sun, I Want You (She's So Heavy)
What are we doing here? What, you want me to tell you that the most iconic album of all time is good? That's what we're doing here? Well yeah, it's good. It's really fucking good. It holds up, and if you put it in the context of its time its downright breathtaking. They found a middleground here which they desperately needed compared to Revolver's stark polar opposite sides, and it makes for an album that even over half a decade later feels fresh and relatively modern.
My issue here is that everything to say about this album has already been said. And pretty much all of it is positive, and pretty much all of that is true. I have nothing to offer here. You know you need to listen to this album if you haven't already, you probably have a pretty good idea of whether you'll like it, so again, what am I doing here? I guess consider this a reminder: this is an album you should have an opinion on if you're at all into music. And chances are it'll be a positive opinion. I recommend this to fans of music.
And that concludes the most redundant write-up I've ever made.
Charles Mingus - The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady
Genre: Avant-Garde Jazz
Song to try: Track A - Solo Dancer
This album provided a really fresh take on jazz compared to what I heard before it. Whereas the majority of what I've heard up until this point has been relatively lowkey, this album is energetic, lively, and a little experimental too. Unfortunately I had a harder time connecting to this album than John Coltrane's A Love Supreme earlier in the list, but I had a lot more fun with this than any other jazz album I've heard.
Now, I'm not sure how much I'm being overly vigilant for themes and narratives after A Love Supreme, but it seems to me that the album details a night out and the pursuit of a romantic interest through dance. It seems to run the gamut of emotions in that regard, from lonesome yearning, to insecurity, to confidence, to competitiveness and jealousy. Again, maybe this is overanalysis, but I felt it all over the course of the album.
Its an interesting case because it appears to have all the markers of a jazz album I wouldn't be able to enjoy. Its the most chaotic jazz album to this point, it bounces from idea to idea, it has a bunch of elements competing for your attention, but somehow it all just works for me. And it may not be my favourite jazz album, but so far it has definitely been the most enjoyable to me.
I think my recommendation for this one is going to be very similar to that of A Love Supreme, in that this is definitely a jazz album for people who don't get it. There is a key difference though: whereas A Love Supreme was a great choice for people who missed the thematic rigidity of other genres, this is more for people who don't care too much about that, but in general find the sound of jazz unexciting or too laidback. This album is definitely neither of those things.
Final thoughts on the 60s
Its a bit of a writing faux pas to retread the same ground like this, but I really feel like this decade is best summed up by my introduction: it is the decade in which the modern music landscape really began to take shape. Where the 50s had a bunch of jazz legends represented, the 60s was chock-full of superstars of music as we'd picture them today. The people who pioneered instead of perfected (although in some cases you could make the case they did both). It was truly an exceptional time for music, and as much as I believe that music would be totally different if not for the things that were accomplished in the 50s, I feel as though it would be totally unrecognizable if not for the influence of the 60s.
On a personal level, I can finally say that I've listened to a Bob Dylan album that I enjoyed, and on top of that I have heard a jazz album that I have a proper connection to now. The Leonard Cohen album and Hot Buttered Soul were also new to me and both of those were also very enjoyable, so while I had already heard half of these albums, I definitely took plenty away from this decade too.
The 1950s marked a significant transition in music history. In many ways, it was the moment where modern pop music began to take shape, which would come to force out the old guard of laid back and classy crooners in favour of the new and exciting sounds and personalities of rock & roll. The pop of the time got more rowdy, rhythm and blues came around to infuse a little soul into the musical world, and jazz was having it's final explosive moment in the sun with classics from the likes of Miles Davis and John Coltrane being some of the most noteworthy music from the decade. The decade was very much an inflection point, and a time of musical turbulence, where all sorts of styles seemed to battle over the future of popular music.
It's easy to overlook the 50s, but if it weren't for the advancements made during this time, the modern music landscape would likely look very different. That being said though, the music world was clearly still finding it's feet in this radical new world they made for themselves, so while the rest of this series will feature 10 albums for each decade, only 7 matched my criteria for this one.
But before we get into the list, I'd like to point you towards the original version of this post on my website. If you'd rather stay on Tumblr, that's fine, that's why the post exists here too, but I have more control over things like formatting over there, so that would be the "real" version of the post. Back to the post!
Ray Charles - Ray Charles
Kind of like: Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye
Songs to try: Mess Around, I Got a Woman, Sinner's Prayer
Starting with the lowest rated of the eligible albums from the 50s, and its albums like these that make you realize why white people stole so much black music. The difference is massive, how could 1950s white boys expect to do better than this while playing fair? There are albums from 10 years later than Ray Charles' self titled that still feel more primitive and outdated than this. It hardly sounds modern, but a modern ear (even one as stubborn as mine) can easily pick up things to appreciate and might even forget that its listening to such an old album at moments.
It is a very simple album at it's core (which makes my job very difficult), but if you're looking for an album to sum up the basic fundamentals of R&B and soul, this may well be it. And Ray Charles' earnest yet expressive vocal performance is enough to keep you engaged throughout too.
Marty Robbins - Gunfighter Ballads and Trail Songs
Genre: Country
Songs to try: Big Iron, Billy the Kid, They're Hanging Me Tonight
When I saw the name of this album, saw that album art, and saw it was a country album... I can't lie, I was shocked that it was eligible for this post, and I wasn't looking forward to it. So when I say I had a pretty good time with it, that should be taken as high praise.
As someone who doesn't tend to like country and to whom the cowboy fantasy doesn't appeal at all by virtue of the fact I'm not American, this album was pretty enjoyable throughout. I had heard Big Iron before from Fallout: New Vegas and I was kinda into it then, even when listening quite passively, and Billy the Kid, as cliche as the song may be, caught my ear on first listen here.
I can't say I thought especially highly of it in absolute terms, but the fact someone so removed from the target audience is able to listen to this album without being bored is either a sign of a total bastardization of the genre, or exceptional execution of it. I'll leave that call to people more familiar with the genre.
Ella Fitzgerald & Louis Armstrong - Ella and Louis
Genre: Jazz
Songs to try: Moonlight In Vermont, Tenderly, April In Paris
Personal and controversial opinion: turns out, I don't really like Louis Armstrong's voice. It's iconic, it really suits a certain vibe, but most of the time? Not for me. Otherwise though, I really enjoyed this album. And even the fact that Louis Armstrong was there did positively contribute to the album for me. It really centered the conversational nature of jazz for me and to such a degree that I'm not sure there's much else I can point to for a similar experience. It feels almost parasocial.
I'm still getting used to talking about older music, and jazz is particularly alien to me, so I'm not sure how to highlight what this album does that isn't a natural byproduct of the genre it exists within, but whether due to the fact that it's jazz or by virtue of this album in particular, it feels like an album that very much exists within a space. It would be both cliche and inaccurate to suggest that it feels like being transported to a jazz club, but there is definitely a very physical quality to the music here.
I definitely think this album is worth a listen if you are at all interested in jazz, which should hardly come as a surprise considering the two legends responsible for it, but I don't think it's one to rush to. It doesn't get much wrong, but it also lacks a hook, in my opinion. There doesn't seem to be anything remarkable that this album does specifically that isn't done better elsewhere. Although that may just be my lack of jazz literacy.
Nina Simone - Little Girl Blue
Kind of like: Samara Joy
Songs to try: Mood Indigo, My Baby Just Cares for Me, Plain Gold Ring
While this may be pretty far from Nina Simone's best, all that would make her such a legendary performer is present here in moments and glimpses.
The most obvious example of that legendary bubbling beneath a far more bland surface being her voice: as great as it still is here, is rarely as distinctive and powerful as it would come to be in some of her classic albums of the 60s.
Another example is the general energy of the album. Nina Simone would become way more dynamic than this album gets, and in future albums she really captures your attention in ways that she simply doesn't for most of the runtime here. It's some great background music, but Nina was so clearly meant for something more.
That being said, make no mistake, this is still some excellent classic jazz, and some of the easiest to recommend from the genre amongst all I've heard so far. It's probably not required listening for prospective jazz fans, but could be the album that lights that spark to begin with it if you aren't quite ready to dive in at the deep end.
Chet Baker - Chet Baker Sings
Kind of like: Laufey, Jeff Buckley but jazzier
Songs to try: But Not for Me, That Old Feeling, The Thrill is Gone
Something to be aware of regarding my specific tastes is that I rarely care about vocals. I can often appreciate them in relation to emotion and how it is conveyed through the voice, but otherwise I don't care how much range someone has, or how their falsetto sounds. It's just not something that excites me at all except for very rare exceptions. But from the moment I hit play on this album I was taken aback by how smooth Chet Baker's voice was. In a time where digital enhancement wasn't an option, his voice came seemed almost flawless and yet still human in a way that those digital enhancements can't be.
To be clear here, I don't hate things like auto-tune and I'm not necessarily coming after artists that use it: the worst thing I can say about it is that it is treated as a default when it shouldn't be and as such is overused. I only bring it up to really demonstrate just how good this guy's voice is. His range isn't all that impressive (or at least, if it is this album doesn't show that off) but his control within his decidedly average range is absolutely mesmerizing. And the tone is smooth as honey to boot.
If good vocals are something you care about in music, this album is a must-listen for sure. It wasn't enough to make me love the album on it's own, but the album does excel in that area and remains solid on most other musical fronts too so I can absolutely see someone loving the hell out of this.
John Coltrane - Blue Train
Genre: Jazz, Hard Bop
This is why there is a limit on exclusively instrumental albums: I recognize their importance and I want to talk about them, but I don't know how. Part of that is down to a simple lack of exposure to jazz especially, but also generally instrumental music, but part of it is also that most of my musical analysis is grounded by lyrics and themes. The former of which of course doesn't exist at all, and the latter of which may not exist and even when it does is especially abstract and hard to read. But I'll try to say something about what I was able to take from the album.
I generally like when the album is horn-led (which is most of the time) as opposed to piano-led. There's just something about the softer tone of brass that feels way more satisfying to me compared to the pointed tone of most jazz pianos. I also found myself coming back to the drums a lot for reasons I don't entirely understand. The playing was fairly simple, but there was something captivating about it, especially on Locomotion.
A negative takeaway I had though, was that technical proficiency often came before emotional resonance for me. That isn't an objective critique, I can't criticize the style-over-substance approach entirely when one of my favourite films is Baby Driver, but it's not what I personally want out of music, so I often got frustrated with the album when there would be these very impressive runs that never seemed to say anything except "hey, check this out". That being said, I'm Old-Fashioned did end up being a very refreshing surprise due in part to that frustration being built up with that flashiness, and I think it led to me being more receptive to it.
One final note on the album that I have is that it often felt like there was nothing to latch onto. No motifs or repetitions of any sort, no ideas that cropped up and provided a pay-off. Maybe this is just my unrefined palette for jazz speaking (it almost certainly is), but I had no idea what to expect in the worst way. It felt less like an unpredictable thrill ride and more like watching a child do art.
Ultimately, I would say I enjoyed the album, but I don't really know whether to recommend it to anyone that hasn't already listened to it. It seems very much like the type of album that would have reached the people it should reach naturally and may not be for the people who would need me to tell them to listen to it.
Miles Davis - Kind of Blue
Genre: Jazz, Cool Jazz
This is pretty much exactly what comes to my mind when I think jazz. It is the quintessential jazz album. If you have listened to jazz, you've listened to (or actively avoided) Kind of Blue. I think that fact alone speaks to the quality of this album plenty on it's own, but seeing as its my job to speak to the quality of the album and I refuse to be outdone by a single fact, I'll expand on that a little more.
If there was one thing that I would say separates this album from the select few jazz albums I've heard, I'd say it was all about structure. Very few songs or even moments here feel totally unstructured or totally rigid, and that balance is crucial for me to be able to appreciate the beauty of the genre as an outsider. Whereas Blue Train felt overly improvisational to me, to the point where I struggled to really grasp anything, Kind of Blue often gives you a solid base (usually provided by the rhythm section) from which the rest of the band can express themselves and which you can mentally return to when the improvisation gets overwhelming, which it rarely does to begin with here for what it's worth.
That point about expression brings me to my next point: this album is great at selling an emotion or a vibe. Maybe it is inexperience talking, but I struggled to pin much down with Blue Train, but here every song feels very distinct and purposeful in a way instrumentals rarely do to me.
I don't mean to bring up my opinions on Blue Train's shortcomings to drag it down; many people more familiar with the genre hold it in very high regard, I just think its a useful contrast to explain how beginner-friendly Kind of Blue is. It is just so excellent at demonstrating what is so great about jazz that even people who have never heard it before can get some sort of connection to it. Its because of that fact that I don't just highly recommend this album, I insist that, if you listen to jazz, this has to be your first album. Its just absolutely perfect as an introduction to the broader sounds and ideals that can then be explored afterwards.
Final thoughts on the 50s
Getting deep into personal opinion territory here, unfortunately I feel let down by the 50s a little. There were some surprises for me, and I finally listened to jazz and got something out of it, but for the most part I feel like music at this stage was largely a technical exercise, where emotional resonance generally took a backseat to that technical proficiency. Combine that with the fact that the two things I generally really appreciate in music (lyrics and production) were both pretty primitive at this stage, and it makes for an experience that was mostly one of neutral appreciation for technical mastery as opposed to the investment I usually feel in music.
As for specific highlights, Kind of Blue definitely deserves to be hailed as the best of the decade, and Gunfighter Ballads and Trail Songs was a surprisingly decent listen for me, but otherwise I didn't really feel much towards this selection of albums. Hopefully the 60s does a little more for me.
Its easy for people, myself included, to have gaping blind spots in music. Sometimes you aren't nearly as familiar as you should be with a particular genre, or maybe an artist has just managed to pass you by despite their popularity. For me though, I think my biggest issue is time-related. Don't get me wrong, I know all the names, but the classics -- especially from before the 80s -- are mostly alien to me. So I decided to make a project out of rectifying that by going through the best albums of each decade (according to Album of the Year's user base as of 18/2/25) and documenting my experience.
There are some additional criteria that I have laid out to make it a little easier to talk about albums that are outside of my comfort zone though:
Maximum of two instrumental albums per decade
Only albums with a user score higher than 80 qualify
Two albums per artist per decade (or as I like to call it: The Beatles rule)
Primarily anglophonic albums only
I hope this is as interesting an idea for you as it is for me. If so, I hope you'll join me as I cover my blindspots, and maybe help you cover some of yours too!
This is an adaptation of a post on my website (chaosincurate.blog) and will be best viewed over there. But if you'd like to follow the series here on Tumblr, you can click on the tags below to find each decade's post when it's published. Unfortunately it's impossible to do circular links here as the links break when a post is edited, so this is the best option I could think of.
This album is surely one of the albums I've referred to the most since starting this blog over on Tumblr two years ago, and I have no qualms with that at all. Apart from just slowly, over time, becoming one of my favourite albums of the decade so far I've decided to write this post for two reasons: one, to really lay out why I love this album so much; and two, to have something to link to in the constantly recurring event that I find myself needing or wanting to discuss it. So lets get into it shall we?
But before we get started, just a brief note to say that this was written for my website, chaosincurate.blog, and is better formatted there. Here's a link if you want to check it out! Also, this is a rewrite of an early post of mine that I'm not a huge fan of. I think it was clunkily written and didn't put across what I find so special about this album. It's so drastically rewritten that I decided to keep my older post up. It can still be found on my Tumblr if you're curious enough to scroll through.
Jubilee & The Tortured Artist Trope
I will get into the track-by-track in a second, but some albums are so much more than the sum of their parts, and this is a very strong example. The album doesn't stick to any particular theme too strongly, but it does seem to have a clear aim: to legitimize happy music in the indie scene.
It is an unfortunate fact that, while most genres (and many mediums too, for that matter) have latched on pretty hard to the idea of pain being a necessity for good art, indie music seems to be particularly wrapped up in the mythology of the tortured artist. To be clear, I don't personally think negativity in art is inherently bad, and neither does Japanese Breakfast's Michelle Zauner by the looks of it, but there is definitely an overrepresentation of depression and anger in art, which I would argue has had a negative effect on music and it's fans in a perpetual, self-fueling spiral. Allow me to explain using a Cobra Effect analogy...
For those who aren't aware of the story, it goes something like this: In colonial India, there was an unsustainably high number of Cobras. The government, in an attempt to crack down on these Cobras, issued a bounty on them. Anyone that brought them a dead Cobra would be rewarded. In response, the citizens started creating Cobra farms, increasing the snake population and endangering themselves to get constant rewards from the government. Now, that story probably isn't true, but it holds a lot of rhetorical value, and I think it's apt to compare it to the relationship between expression of negative emotion in artistry and compensation for art.
Artists initially started expressing negative emotion to work through those emotions using a healthy outlet and eventually they started getting rewarded for it, being considered brave and artistic (and the fact it often helped others to work through those same feelings helped too). You may consider that a fitting reward for the artists bravery, but after a while it became a market in and of itself. If you were willing to express your negative emotions (or even just pretend to), you would be rewarded for it. There was a market that was ready to connect to your music on a very deep level and they would extol your virtues with the loyalty of someone with a life debt.
Artists soon realized that if you could farm negativity within yourself (or, again, convincingly pretend to), you would be rewarded handsomely, and most acted accordingly, pumping out pained ballad after pained ballad for the misery machine. Some of that would happen without the incentive, and some of it is my favourite music of all time, but the incentive cannot be ignored. We (the artists and the consumers of that art) have created an environment in which misery is romanticized and joy is stigmatized, with the sole exception of pop music which, thanks to a recent shift, seems to have a pretty balanced representation of emotions.
So this is what Jubilee stands in opposition to: not sadness in music, but the infatuation with that sadness. Jubilee says "I like sad music too, but there's more to life to explore in art". It rejects the lazy creativity of misery farming and strives to tap into a broader perspective on life, providing a stance on why the misery is worth living through. And that statement is made most strongly with the opening track.
Paprika
Paprika isn't the most popular song from this album. It might not even be top 3 (according to last.fm it's 4th), but I feel it should be. To me, while this song isn't the catchiest thing on the album, it has the potential to make a real positive impact on indie music (much like the album as a whole, just with wider reach). It also works as an excellent introduction to the album, so it may have even made the record more successful too if this song were given a push. But the song still exists and is considered a powerful piece of art by those who have listened to it, so let's delve into what is so special about this song.
Starting off with the lyrics, this is some of my favourite writing, definitely in music, and quite possibly in any form of media. It is everything I gushed about in the opening section of the post laid out in evocative lyrical perfection. It isn't entirely happy or sad, but instead approaches joy in a nuanced way, acknowledging that when joy is felt strongly it can come with a depressive hangover, but all the while insists upon the exhilarating rush of joy and that it is worth the pang of pain of immediate nostalgia you may feel afterwards.
The song has so much density of meaning, and everything is conveyed in such a clear and beautiful way. It's a perfect paragon of positive lyricism.
"
Lucidity came slowly
I awoke from dreams of untying a great knot
It unraveled like a braid into what seemed were thousands of separate strands of fishing line
Attached to a coarse behaviour it flowed
A calm, it urged "what else is here?"
"
But while the lyrics may be the highlight of this song for me, the instrumental from which the title comes (evoking a similar marching band sound to that of the anime of the same name) is also exceptional, unraveling in this magical way, with layered synths introducing you to the album, lulling you into a state of euphoric relaxation before a bright, bubbling melody brings in the previously mentioned marching band to a joyous pomp. The song develops fairly naturally from there with an added sprinkle of absurdist, wonky synthwork, but those first few moments are so incredibly powerful that the song could rely on that opening entirely and be a worthwhile listen.
If you only listen to one song from Jubilee, I highly recommend you make it this one. Is it the most fun song on the album? Not at all. But it encapsulates what the album is about so well, and is so important for the space in music that it occupies that I believe it should be the priority. If you also feel like having fun though, the next song has more than it's fair share...
Be Sweet
From an ode to joy to the most joyous-sounding song on the album. Be Sweet isn't easy to categorize thematically. Falling somewhere between a love song and a breakup song, the protagonist is asking for their partner to "be sweet" so that they can move on and be happy together. There is an everpresent acknowledgement that she is willing to leave should their partner not change their ways, but that she'd rather not have to do so. She loves her significant other, but the relationship has become untenable in it's current state. The balance is handled really well and paints a satisfyingly nuanced picture.
Sound wise, it really hones in on a carefree feeling which does wonders for that balanced "I'm going to be happy with or without you" impression you get from the lyrics, channeling funk and 80's synthpop aesthetics to help prop up that "Tell the men I'm coming" side of the song, but which can also be viewed as a celebration of a renewed relationship. It strikes an exceptional balance while also asserting itself as, by far, the most fun song on the album.
Kokomo, IN
As great as Be Sweet is, it does create a problem for the album (quite possibly the only problem I have) in that the sequencing is a little awkward following it, with the next track, Kokomo, IN, taking a sharp turn into the slow and wistful that feels a little jarring.
But a jarring switch up on track 3 or 4 isn't rare at all, with the album's introductory excitement wearing off and a change being required but with album's often going too big for their own good. What really sabotages an album is that track switch coming in the form of a lesser song, or not navigating the sequencing well from there. And thankfully I don't think the former is much of an issue, as while the song may not be my favourite on the album, it is still a clear example of Japanese Brakfast's knack for invoking the perfect emotion with sound. The feeling of nostalgic yearning and stasis is palpable here, and the balance of frustration and appreciation is handled shockingly well.
So that begs the question: how does it navigate the sequencing from there?
Slide Tackle
Exceptionally. The transition from a wistful, slow ballad to a plucky, somewhat dance-tinged song is an absolute masterstroke. It suits the album perfectly while setting up the rest of the album's sequencing well and does a great job of reinforcing the theme of joy, even as it tackles the subject of doubts or some harmful thought process preventing the protagonist from living life to the fullest.
It's absolutely still a hopeful song though, as the lyrics seem to imply a temporariness to the struggle, and the music itself begins upbeat and ends in full-on triumph. While it doesn't explicitly say what happens to the subject of the song, there is a strong emphasis on the positive, on hope, and an implication that it either does or will end up alright.
Posing In Bondage
This one is another highlight of the album for me. It creates a harsh soundscape, but one that you feel secluded and insulated from. As if you are wrapped in a loving cocoon amongst a harsh world. And that is about as fitting as it gets for an ode to the power of monogamy that also acknowledges it's downfalls. It's so beautiful it gives me chills.
"
When the world divides into two people
Those who have felt pain
And those who have yet to
And I can't unsee it
Although I would like to
Posing in bondage
I hope you come home soon
"
While the lyrics (partially lifted from Michelle Zauner's excellent book Crying In H Mart) seem to suggest that there is a negative tension within the relationship, you also get the impression that it is still very healthy and loving and that the tension ultimately strengthens their bond. That the short-term sacrifice of a lack of closeness and proximity creates an even stronger intimacy in the long run. It's a uniquely nuanced and subtle piece of writing from a very gifted writer who excels at nuance in dialectical writing.
Sit
This one is thematically similar in a lot of ways to the previous track. It is once again about yearning for connection, but it's played a lot more straight, and the implication here is not that the people in the song are in a long-term relationship, but rather that it is pure fantasy, whether about a total stranger or an estranged lover.
"
Caught up in the idea of someone
Caught up in the idea of you
That's done too soon
"
These lyrics are backed by noisy, dreamy synths in the verses that give way to a relatively minimalist and pleasant guitar in the chorus as the yearning turns to fantasizing.
It's a beautiful piece of music, albeit uniquely direct compared to the rest of the album, and manages to avoid feeling redundant, at least to me, following a similar track by virtue of pure quality. It might not be a highlight of the album like the songs that bookend it, but it is a song that the album would be worse off for not having.
Savage Good Boy
Savage Good Boy is an upbeat, tongue-in-cheek song about the rich escaping the consequences of apocalypse while offering a love interest the same escape in return for a romantic relationship. There is a lot of thematic depth packed into this little song too, from the endless pursuit of money and the pleasures it buys to the spoiled obsession that excess creates.
"
I wanna make the money till there's no more to be made
And we will be so wealthy I'm absolved from questioning
"
Before I move on and talk about the instrumental a bit more, I'd like to point something out about the above lines that expose something important about the song more broadly: the self-centredness. This song is barely about the love interest at all. It is the most self-obsessed love song I've ever heard and I don't think that is an accident at all. It reflects the fact that the narrator doesn't really feel love for this woman. He feels a desire, not to be with her, but to have her play a role in his pursuit of patriarchal success, by any means necessary. He doesn't want to build a life around this woman, he wants her to slot neatly into his life inside his "billion dollar bunker for two". It is a subtle thing that is woven throughout the song and makes the satire even more piercing.
Now, as promised, a little about the sound of the song. For the most part, it's a pretty straightforward indie pop song, but there are a few elements added in to give it personality. Most notably, the backing vocals have been pitched up and it gives the song a very childish vibe, adding to and reinforcing the petulance implied within the lyrics. Another touch that does much of the same is that shrieking distortion on the guitar at the end of the song. A high-pitched guitar would probably do the trick on it's own, but the distortion seems to instill the feeling that there are stakes to this childish brat's demands and/or the meltdowns following a rejection of them. Once again, a song from Japanese Breakfast that paints a detailed picture with simple methods.
In Hell
While the album as a whole is about joy, this song is a downer through and through. Michelle Zauner has demonstrated on several occasions that she knows how to write about death, and this song is perhaps the finest example of that. It feels clinically brutal, as the lyrics allude to.
"
And under the fluorescents
Another sterile room where no one ever
Tells you just how clinical death looks
"
The song is just a constant flurry of lyrics that run the gamut of emotions felt in a situation like being the one to okay the death of a loved one who is unable to make that call for themselves. It's blunt. It's brutal. It's unfair. It's riddled with unwarranted, but totally understandable, guilt and I for one can't help but feel a hole carve out where my heart once was before it was savagely torn from my chest.
"
Face to face
And at my hands I snowed you in
With hydrocodone
Layer by layer 'til you disappeared
"
Tactics
Next, we thankfully return to a more positive place: a place of understanding in spite of frustration. The song is about Michelle Zauner's relationship with her father after the death of her mother. It doesn't let him off the hook for his actions (namely, the distancing of himself from his daughter in a traumatic time in both of their lives), but it also acknowledges the hardship that brought about this awful pattern of behaviour. It doesn't just stop there though, as it gets introspective too, recognizing the good it has done for her (making her a less naive person when it comes to connecting with others) and the negative (the excess of that lack of naivety turning into an unhealthy distrust).
Adding to the very thoughtful depiction of these feelings is the instrumental which feels peaceful and meditative, but in a way that borders on anthemic somehow. It's a beautiful balance of the excitement needed to keep the listener engaged at this point while also centering the lyrics and doing what is best for the song first and foremost.
I think this serves as an important moment for the album's thesis. Much like how Dead Poets Society derives it's narrative power from the characters who most reject it and test it's statements, Jubilee might fall short if not for the fact that Michelle Zauner is testing her capacity for positive thinking by focussing on someone she likely feels a lot of resentment for. And that could just as easily make the album's message work convincingly as it could make it fall apart, but Michelle Zauner once again proves her talent for writing by, as mentioned earlier, putting forth an understanding picture of the situation that feels sincere. It's not entirely flattering, but it remains positive without feeling forced, which is the best thing she could possibly do to convince you of the album's thesis.
Posing For Cars
In the album's closer, the focus shifts back to the most accepted form of positivity within music: love. But Japanese Breakfast wouldn't be content with a simple love song, so instead, Michelle Zauner finds the nuance in her relationship with another person to write about with an added sincerity. As the title implies, there's a discomfort there, it's messy, not ideal, but the love doesn't falter, even as there is a clear rift in the forms their respective expressions of love take. The narrator is excitable in love, frantic, limerent, maybe even needy, while her partner is more laid-back, still loving, but in a way that doesn't need to reaffirm itself. It doesn't feel like the relationship is one-sided, even if the narrator describes a situation where she loves more actively than the other person, instead it feels like the pair compliment each other's personalities to make them a great couple with a love that can stand the test of time.
So that's why I feel as though Jubilee is one of the most important albums for the music industry, particularly the indie music scene. It is a collection of odes to positivity that don't feel forced and fake, but instead strike the necessary balance to make each song feel like a representation of a real perspective on life that can actually be sustainably replicated. It makes positivity feel like not just the right way of going about life, but a possible way of living life, and a way that doesn't make you fake or boring. On the contrary, there is so much sincerity, nuance, introspection, and intelligence in this album that it puts Morrissey to shame (as much as I respect his writing too). The tortured artist isn't dead, but they aren't royalty to be heralded either.
Thank you for reading my hyperfixated ramble about one of my favourite albums, I hope you got something out of it, and if you haven't already, I hope you give Jubilee a listen. Her/their album before it, Soft Sounds From Another Planet is great too, albeit not as thematically rich, and if you're up for it, it'd make for great listening ahead of their new album's release.
This is a post from my blog, chaosincurate.blog, adapted for Tumblr. I've done my best to format it as well as I possibly can, but I simply have more options on my website, so for the best experience, check it out over there. For those of you who are still sticking around, I also have a playlist available on YouTube, Spotify, or Apple Music containing the songs I'd recommend from each of these entries, if you'd prefer to consume the list that way. Here's the smartlink for that!
What an incredible year it's been... Well... For music anyway. We've had the true breakthrough of the new wave of pop music with the likes of Charli xcx, Chappell Roan, and Sabrina Carpenter seeing great success in very different but somehow connected ways (perhaps simply in their unanimous agreement that a mixture of fun and misery is healthier than the zeitgeist constantly bouncing between the two), we've had indie artists that have been on the brink of something amazing finally achieving that something great, and saving my favourite for last, rap... Well if you can read this you were around this summer. You don't need me to tell you how big a year it was for rap. This has all made making this list very difficult, and I'm certain that I haven't yet gotten around to some albums that would have made it on here if I had. But of the music I've listened to this year, this is my subjective take on the 20 best albums of the year.
20
Machine Girl - MG Ultra
Kind of like: Nothing I've heard. It's a totally new sound to me. Songs to try: Until I Die, Grindhouse, Hot Lizard
First on my list of the top 20 albums of the year is this overwhelming digital hardcore album. I was making an active effort to discover more electronic music this year and this album made me glad I did, because I never really considered that it could sound like this. Abrasive, exciting, and fast, sure, I expected all that going in, but the emotion in this one really surprised me. It's super angsty throughout, albeit with some self-awareness, and that extends to the vocals too, which are honestly far more unclean than I think I'd usually be up for, but the digital soundscape makes it go down easier for me for some reason.
19
Lupe Fiasco - Samurai
Kind of like: Little Simz, A Tribe Called Quest
Songs to try: Cake, Samurai, Mumble Rap
I feel like this is one that might grow a lot on me with repeat listens, but for now it's sitting in a respectable 19th. For the purposes of a list like this it may just be too thoughtful for it's own good. As short as it is, I don't know that I've had enough listens to properly take everything in. The loose concept is a fun one though: Amy Winehouse's hypothetical foray into battle rapping. It doesn't stick to that concept super closely, but it revisits it when apt to make occasional points, from what I've gleaned.
While most of this album seemingly requires deeper listening than I have given it, the sound is immediately respectable. The low-key jazzy instrumentals make this album one of the most laid-back hip-hop listens I've had, while also providing the perfect platform for Lupe Fiasco's intricate and thoughtful lyricism to shine.
18
The Cure - Songs of a Lost World
Kind of like: Disintegration-era The Cure, Beach House, Slowdive
Songs to try: Drone:Nodrone, A Fragile Thing, And Nothing Is Forever
I would love to say this is a return to form for a band that has clearly demonstrated that they are virtuosos in the multiple styles they have embodied over the years, and in many ways that's true -- if they were to continue their recent form, as I see it at least, they would struggle to make the top 20 of even a weak year for music -- but they are still weighed down by silly things that ruin their chances of an album of the year shout for me.
For one, and this is very much a personal preference, I'm not a fan of the way they do meta self-reference. There's nothing too wrong with it in theory, but in practice I can't help but cringe whenever I hear the words "This is the end of every song we sing", which is made worse by the fact they were the first words we heard from the album, with it being the introductory line for both the lead single and the album's opener. Again, that point is clearly a me thing, because I'm yet to see anyone else mention it negatively and some people have even brought it up as a positive, but it definitely influenced it's placement on this list.
The other, more important issue is the production. And to be clear, I think this style of production has it's place (it suits Drone:Nodrone for example, and A Fragile Thing is ironically left largely unharmed by it) but the mix being so immediate and warm doesn't seem to suit the tone of the album or The Cure as a band seeing as they tend towards either chirpy guitar-driven music or oppressive soundscapes. Maybe they had that in mind and wanted to accommodate both styles with this choice, but it ends up as the worst of both worlds and it feels like the mix isn't playing to any of the music's strengths.
While I am disappointed though, it's more so in response to unreached potential as opposed to genuinely poor quality. The fact remains that while the album wasn't able, in my opinion, to place itself on the podium for the band's best work, it is a respectable contribution to their discography and is well worth a listen for fans of both The Cure and goth rock more broadly.
17
The Last Dinner Party - Prelude to Ecstasy
Kind of like: Humbug by Arctic Monkeys, Florence + The Machine, Wet Leg
Songs to try: Nothing Matters, Beautiful Boy, The Feminine Urge
A very promising debut for The Last Dinner Party has given them well-deserved acclaim and popularity as they bring back the 00s rock sound with a classical, ornate flair and aesthetic. The lyrics and vocals are exceptional and the instrumentals are exciting, but they are being held back from a top 10 placement for me by 1. an impressive year for music in general, and 2. a slight lack of originality.
Now, there is something unique about this band musically, there had to be for me to rate them as highly as I have, but I think they could easily afford to ramp that up in the next album without sacrificing the commercial success they've received. If they can exaggerate that ornate spin (or whatever unique style they pursue in their next album) and properly incorporate it into their sound as opposed to it mostly being a backdrop, they could even have an album of the year on their hands, provided their next release doesn't come out in such a crowded year. That being said, if you're interested in an alternative rock album, especially one with a classical flair, you'll struggle to find better this year.
16
Honeyglaze - Real Deal
Kind of like: For the First Time by Black Country, New Road, Slint
Songs to try: Pretty Girls, Safety Pins, Don't
I was surprised after listening to this album (which was my first exposure to the band) that they weren't strongly linked with the new rock movement in the UK consisting of bands like Black Country, New Road; Squid; and black midi. To me, there were clear similarities, particularly with the first of those examples. It's absolutely a little more tender than the other bands there outside of Ants From Up There, but the mixture of low-key bright guitar passages and the bassy, distorted sounds along with strange lyrics with mundane imagery reminds me a lot of Black Country, New Road's first album and to a lesser extent Squid's work too.
That being said, once again, I feel like there isn't quite enough originality on display here to blow me away. All three of those bands at the forefront of this movement have carved out a clear, unique direction for themselves, but this is still very similar to that first BC,NR album. The band do still feel fresh though, so I'm sure they aren't done exploring their sound yet and I'm optimistic their next album will be an improvement on an impressive outing.
15
Bob Vylan - Humble as the Sun
Kind of like: Punkier slowthai stuff, IDLES
Songs to try: Dream Big, GYAG (Get Yourself A Gun), Hunger Games
Bob Vylan's new album is a great blend of genres, in particular those that are historically associated with working classes in the UK, perhaps attempting a modern London Calling effect, and the sounds are navigated pretty well. Primarily though, this is a punk album, and I think that is where a lot of the album's drawbacks appear.
First and foremost, they do succeed with flying colours in the most important area for the genre: righteous, working class anger. From Hunger Games' critique of the exploitation of the impoverished for the sake of "games" (seemingly inspired by a This Morning "Spin To Win" segment, in which callers were met with a spinning wheel to determine the prize they'll receive with one of the sections on the wheel during a time of great economic upheaval read "energy bills" and later "household bills" before being scrapped entirely), to the sympathetic frustration towards people who accept the systems that keep them poor and their place within it in Dream Big.
While I can't criticize the themes Bob Vylan touch on though, I do feel as though it's preaching to the choir a bit. If you aren't familiar with the concepts that they touch on here, it will go over your head as it is assumed that you already understand them to a certain extent. If you do understand these concepts though, the album just doesn't really challenge you very much. It just doesn't feel like it's enlightening anyone politically at all, which feels like a big flaw for a punk album, as understandable as it is with the internet creating a massive schism in understanding of political ideas.
Essentially, while this album is a great listen and can be pretty cathartic, if Bob Vylan want to improve on their next album I would personally suggest that they need to figure out who they're supposed to be talking to. If they're talking to the politically unaware, they need to present their messages more wholly. If they are talking to people who are more politically aware, they need to start critiquing more nuanced issues or universal issues in a more nuanced way. As I mentioned with the previous albums, this is still a great listen and there's a lot of promise here, but it feels like it's lacking the purpose that a punk album desperately needs to excel.
If you're a fan of the punk sound and don't really care much about the lyrics being politically important (if you're a fan of pop-punk for example), you'll probably get a real kick out of this album. Otherwise, it might still be worth a shot, but it's a strange one to recommend because it's hard to gauge who it appeals to.
14
Fontaines D.C. - Romance
Kind of like: Food for Worms by shame, Bright Green Field by Squid
Songs to try: Starburster, Favourite, Sundowner
Fontaines D.C. have already made a name for themselves with Skinty Fia as sleeper giants of the modern post-punk scene, and with this album they keep their streak alive with another great album. While it might not carry the weight of some of their songs off their last album, they've begun to explore their sound a lot more freely with their gothic influences anchoring them and keeping the album relatively cohesive despite the band venturing into neighbouring sub-genres like shoegaze and The Cure-esque pop.
While some of those ventures work better than others for me personally (as much as I try I can't really seem to make shoegaze click for me), they are undeniably well-executed, making this not only a great album in it's own right, but a great jumping off point for people trying to find out more about indie music. Not that you need to be a beginner to appreciate this album though. It's versatility may suit newbies better than those whose tastes are more well-defined, but if you're a fan of indie music this could easily be seen as a great love letter to the weird descriptor-turned-genre too.
13
Nia Archives - Silence Is Loud
Kind of like: Honestly, I don't know, this style is new to me
Songs to try: Killjoy !, Forbidden Feelingz, Unfinished Business
If I learned one thing about my taste in music this year, it's that I love some thoughtful dance music. To be clear, I don't say that as a slight against escapist dance music, it just isn't for me, and I thought that was true of more or less the entire genre before this year. This album wasn't the first to prove me wrong there, but it was crucial to my learning that lesson for good.
I had previously assumed that, even when there were lyrics, they would pretty much always be taking a backseat to the music, that it just wouldn't matter what the songs are about, but every song here has comparable or better lyrics than the average pop song, and that was enough to get me hooked on the infectious, rapid beats and Columbo samples.
12
beabadoobee - This Is How Tomorrow Moves
Kind of like: Being Funny in a Foreign Language by The 1975, Phoebe Bridgers, Olivia Rodrigo
Songs to try: Beaches, Take a Bite, Ever Seen
Admittedly, on first listen I didn't really like this album all that much. My main issue was the mix. It seemed really warm and kind of like everything was pushed forward and it felt too immediate. On repeat listens though, I've come to appreciate that as an intentional decision that invites the listener in for what is a very intimate, vulnerable listen. Probably the most vulnerable of all of beabadoobee's albums.
I also came to really appreciate the running theme of rejecting the passive approach to the enjoyment of life, a theme which is most prevalent on Beaches where she urges the listener "don't wait for the tide just to dip both your feet in", and to go out and do what you can to enjoy life right now instead of waiting for the perfect moment. On first listen, I thought it was more or less just this track that touched on the idea, but on repeat listens, whether intentional or just a product of Bea's mindset during the album's creation, I found it popped up quite a lot.
If you're a fan of the twee indie pop style that has really seemed to take hold in recent years, this is a great example of it that you should absolutely check out.
11
Billie Eilish - HIT ME HARD AND SOFT
Kind of like: The Marías, Phoebe Bridgers, SZA
Songs to try: BIRDS OF A FEATHER, LUNCH, CHIHIRO
Billie Eilish hit it out of the park with this one. I honestly thought I was over her music as I gradually lost interest in the majority of her first album and skipped her last one almost entirely, but this was spectacular and reminded me exactly what I fell in love with in the first place.
As ever, the production is a standout feature here. It's a lot more low-key than her previous work, but that doesn't mean there aren't interesting decisions being made throughout the entire album, from the feedback on CHIHIRO, to the "You moved on" beat switch and "Caught on camera" filter on the outro of L'AMOUR DE MA VIE, it's yet another production masterclass here.
But of course there's more to the album than just that. Billie Eilish's vocals are spectacular here, and we know how well she can do those tender whisper vocals, but she experiments with her style on quite a few occasions here, with slightly more direct pop vocals on LUNCH and the occasional belting on a few songs. On top of that, the lyricism continues to focus on a far broader range of topics than your average pop album, and many of the melodies are diabolically infectious.
It doesn't quite appeal to me consistently well enough to make it as one of my personal album of the year contenders, especially in such a packed year, but it is an exceptional album at it's best and I would have no problems understanding why someone might call this their album of the year.
10
Jean Dawson - Glimmer of God
Kind of like: The Weeknd, Yves Tumor
Songs to try: Darlin', You're Bleeding Everywhere, Play Dead
I've been waiting for a few years for Jean Dawson to really impress me, knowing he had it in him, and finally I think I can say he has. You may have noticed with the previous write-ups that we're starting to get to the point where either the albums are dragged down by a couple songs I don't rally like, or they just don't quite have the quality to be album of the year contenders but for me, the issue preventing this album from making it is simply bloat. I think it's noticeable that 15 songs isn't necessary to say what this album needs to say, and some of the songs that repeat certain themes aren't quite as good as the rest of the album, which frustratingly means the album suffers from a mere lack of restraint. Everything else was there.
That being said though, the album does have something to say. I can't say I quite understand the specifics of the narrative (it seems to follow a mob boss or someone similar who dies and comes back to life), but it absolutely comes through as a cautionary ode to mortality. It's been said many times before that death gives life meaning, and this album seems to take that and add nuance, confronts the fear of death and gives counterpoints (such as the opener which, in the context of the album, essentially asks "where is the meaning in the life of an awful man who dies early and is forgotten?"). All the while, though, it takes great care to ensure that death isn't necessarily glorified, just confronted as something that inevitably happens and should be made the most of.
While this isn't especially close to being my favourite album of the year, it is close to my most replayed (second most, I think), which speaks to it's quality. The exciting thing about this is that I still get the sense Jean Dawson can do even better. A little bit more restraint, or a little more narrative depth and he could make a clear album of the year contender with his next outing.
9
Foxing - Foxing
Kind of like: Model/Actriz, Nine Inch Nails
Songs to try: Hell 99, Gratitude, Barking
Next we have one of the most interesting rock albums I've heard in a long time. There's a strange sense of space across this album that really just works. Unfortunately for me, that space is hard to describe, but the crucial thing I want to be understood is that it very much feels intentional and professional, not like the typical, amateurish space that makes it feel like something is missing musically.
The intent behind that space is likely found in the lyrics, as there is a recurring theme of meaninglessness and ennui across the record. That theme makes itself very clear on Hell 99's angst at a stunted society, where you can find the incredible lines "I thought the future would be all things set on fire but now everything worth immolating is insured". While I don't personally agree with the hopeless picture this album paints, I can't help but marvel at the impressive final result. If you're interested in artsy, noisy rock music, this is the best example of that all year by far.
8
Vampire Weekend - Only God Was Above Us
Kind of like: Death Cab for Cutie, Ants From Up There by Black Country, New Road, Elliott Smith
Songs to try: Classical, The Surfer, Hope
Vampire Weekend's new album brings a maturity and modernism to their classic sound, with improved lyrics that thoughtfully touch on the political and personal alike, backed by far more interesting production than ever before.
There's a very particular vibe about this album that is hard to pin down. A strange mix of maturity and youth. I'm not really sure how to describe it, but it means that there is plenty of wisdom to be found, but also an new and interesting artistic vision to back it up. Their sound is very much a revisiting of their first few albums, but altered to suit the band now. It feels a little more grown-up and thoughtful, but again it must be stressed: still fun and full of energy.
This is definitely a great listen for anyone who likes the original Vampire Weekend sound and may have been alienated (as I was) by their last effort, and may even be a good starting point for prospective Vampire Weekend fans too.
7
Los Campesinos! - All Hell
Kind of like: Gang of Youths, Death Cab for Cutie, Arcade Fire
Songs to try: The Coin-Op Guillotine, A Psychic Wound, To Hell in a Handjob
All Hell is the sound of a middle-aged punk losing their faith but keeping their fight, swinging fists hopelessly and reflecting on the next generation of radicals and the trajectory of the political space they helped build. It is someone who has done a lot of thinking about the external and the political being forced to reckon with the internal and personal.
To be clear, Los Campesinos! aren't really a punk band, and although they always had a radical vibe about them, they were mostly depicting personal stories in their art, but here, by explicitly mentioning some of their political stances with a clarity that they never have before, they paint the opposite picture: a picture of a punk doing some self-reflection.
As always, the lyrics are exceptionally endearing, thanks to the subtle comedy that strikes the balance between getting a chuckle and not overpowering the message ("Do you still have that one tattoo? // That's how it works, of course you do"), and the nerdy football references that are always woven into their work, adding a layer of personality.
This is one of those albums that, while critically speaking there isn't much about it that is particularly special, it has a certain je ne sais quoi about it. It's a fantastic album for indie fans who like anthems and introspective cuts alike.
6
Geordie Greep - The New Sound
Kind of like: black midi, Squid, The Smile
Songs to try: Holy, Holy; Blues; Through a War
black midi but make it jazzy.
If that's your dream sound, you're in luck because that's The New Sound. Geordie Greep creates a soundscape of high-class debauchery to lambast many a pathetic archetype of masculinity, albeit in an occasionally sympathetic manner. In particular Blues feels like an understanding critique. It is unflinching in it's mockery of this person, but when you hear lines in the outro like "admit you have tried to cry and can't", whether intended or not, you can't help but have some sympathy for this person who has lost touch with their humanity and is now dripping with insecurity.
And I think that is ultimately the main theme of the album: the insecure bravado of masculinity. The simple lies of Blues, the entirely manufactured image of importance and sex appeal in Holy, Holy, the oppression of Through a War, and on and on it goes. And as mentioned already, the balance is perfect between criticism and well-placed sympathy, and it creates a seamless experience that on the surface doesn't feel like you're being told anything until you take a step back and see how often this theme pops up. It's expertly done.
If you think you'd enjoy a jazz-rock album that embraces a little chaos and approaches the topic of masculinity with equal amounts of humour and sincerity, this is your dream album, but I'd also recommend it to anyone interested in that section of indie rock that bands like black midi inhabited.
5
Tyler, The Creator - CHROMAKOPIA
Kind of like: Childish Gambino, Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers by Kendrick Lamar, By the Time I Get to Phoenix by Injury Reserve
Songs to try: Noid, Hey Jane, Balloon
This is yet another album that is able to get a great balance between being thoughtful and staying fun, and that makes the 53 minutes this takes up feel like half that while justifying every second. And through it all, the idea of identity is constantly being explored, leaving a lasting impact as well as the immediate satisfaction that comes from listening to an album this good.
Last time I tried listening to Tyler, The Creator I listened to Flower Boy, and enjoyed it in the moment but never really revisited it or thought about it again. It was plenty interesting, but it wasn't catchy or profound enough (at least as far as I could tell on first listen) to stick with me. Maybe the album would have grown on me by now and deserves a revisit, but the point is as soon as I heard this album, it all clicked. I understood why Tyler was so highly acclaimed, and every word connected, every musical choice seemed clever, and the album worked on every level.
It's an incredible album and if it came out in most other years it would at least be the best rap album of the year for me, but as it stands, its just sneaking onto the podium. As for who this is for, I think it's pretty broadly appealing, so if you're a fan of thoughtful rap that balances the experimental with the accessible, or if you're new to the genre and want to find out what it's all about, this seems like a great fit for you.
4
JPEGMAFIA - I LAY DOWN MY LIFE FOR YOU
Kind of like: There's no one like Peggy
Songs to try: don't rely on other men, Exmilitary, SIN MIEDO
It may ring hollow when Peggy tries to make it sound like he'd kill a nazi now that he's collaborated with one, but the production, and the energy of his performance is as powerful as ever. This is why you're only as cancelled as your next project, because my hesitation surrounding listening to a JPEGMAFIA album after the Ye shit dissipated by track two. I still don't like that he worked with someone who said he liked Hitler, but I take a very personal approach to "cancelling" based on my comfort with engaging with each person's art, and I just can't be uncomfortable when the music is this good. Or at least it's going to take him personally doing something reprehensible and even then it would probably be a painful experience.
So much of what makes this album incredible is the production. From the expert sampling ("BIG BOOTY HOES! UP WITH IT!"/sampling a fucking door on don't rely on other men), to the flawless infusion of rock and even hardcore elements into his sound, it all just works so unbelievably well.
The recommendation bit will be very straightforward here: this is a must-listen for rap fans. Depending on what type of rap fan you are there's a chance you might not like it (there isn't much in the way of thoughtfulness in the lyrics here), but I believe you have to at least dip your toes in.
3
Charli xcx - BRAT
Songs to try: Sympathy is a knife, Everything is romantic, Von dutch
You probably already know BRAT. You might have even had a BRAT summer. Or maybe you spent the summer loathing the fact that you couldn't escape this cultural phenomenon of an album outside of the brief moments of reprieve Not Like Us granted you. But love it or hate it, you thought about it, and I think that's the essence of BRAT.
"If you love it, if you hate it I don't fucking care what you think"
Made by an artist who has constantly been bubbling under ever since their shift to a more experimental sound, with even her most commercial release not quite getting the star-making success you might expect from someone with the critical reception and dedicated fan-base she had, this album feels like a product of frustration and insecurity. There are themes on this album that seem to conflict with eachother when taken at face value, but that really come together to sell the feeling the album appears to be going for; that being the switching between "I'm that bitch" tracks and "am I though?" tracks.
This dialectic is perfectly summed up with two clear examples: Von dutch and I might say something stupid. The former is the standard braggadocios fare, with Charli opening the song with the lines "It's okay to just admit that you're jealous of me" and only getting cuntier from there, whereas the latter is a thoughtful and vulnerable introspection into her position in the music industry at the time, being "perfect for the background", and popular enough to be afraid for her privacy (amongst many other things), but not popular enough to really reap any of the rewards of fame.
I'm not sure there's much point recommending this to anyone considering the marketing campaign probably meant that if you were going to like it, you'd know by now, but if you've been holding off on it, it's worth a shot.
2
Kendrick Lamar - GNX
Kind of like: Quintessential West-Coast Hip-Hop
Songs to try: tv off, squabble up, luther
This is rough. I absolutely love this album. It's far from Kendrick's best, but I was so convinced a week after this came out that it'd be my album of the year, and I still like it just as much, but I just ended up enjoying my number 1 a little more. That isn't to take away from this album though. It seems to have everything you could possibly want from Kendrick apart from a clear concept. It has bops, bangers, and jams; it has great lyrical displays; it has unique performances and flows... Despite being one of the biggest albums of the year following a November release, I genuinely think this album is still underrated.
Because the album isn't really a conceptual masterpiece by Kendrick's standards, I'd like to put the focus on what the album does do exceptionally well: individual tracks.
First, I'd like to discuss squabble up. This is the point in the album where the tone has been set with wacced out murals and things really start to pick up, and Kendrick does just that superbly, with catchy bars and inflections ("I feel good get the fuck out my faaaaace") as he celebrates his place as the biggest, most respected rapper in the world and urges other rappers to step it up, which maybe isn't the most unique concept, but it hits different here thanks to the undeniability of it. The only other person that has any claim to the crown right now is Drake, who despite everything is still doing numbers, but with his reputation ruined, the claim is hardly strong. Ultimately it's that context that gives this song it's power. It's not your typical rap confidence, it's the king putting his kingdom on notice.
Then there's reincarnated, arguably Kendrick's best song to date. This is what I had in mind when I mentioned lyrical displays earlier. There are great bars across the album, but this is pure poetry. Kendrick uses the concept of reincarnation to discuss the ways fame and success influences people towards evil and self-destructive indulgence (like the sentiments depicted on man at the garden). Once this pattern is demonstrated, Kendrick turns to himself and shifts the song into a direct self-critique. The song has so much sympathy in it, but also demonstrates a lot of accountability. It recognizes the way these talented people are lead astray, but also doesn't allow that to be used as an excuse for hurting people. It's just such an interesting concept that was executed with the perfect levels of maturity and discomfort required to make it hit home.
Other than that, I just want to touch on SZA's incredible vocal performance. Every time she appears on the album she absolutely kills it. She might have the smoothest vocals I've ever heard and the most satisfying melodies too. It never gets old.
Every time Kendrick releases something it's a must-listen for rap fans, and this one is no different, except for it's greater accessibility, meaning even the more casual listeners should be getting involved with this one.
1
Magdalena Bay - Imaginal Disk
Kind of like: Jubilee by Japanese Breakfast, Caroline Polachek, yeule
Songs to try: Image, Killing Time, Cry for Me
I really love this album. On first listen I kinda liked it, but it wasn't close to my album of the year. On second listen I loved it, and it was a contender. On third listen, it was my album of the year. On fourth listen, it's become one of my favourites of all time.
Every hook is so infectious, all the melodies are captivating, the production is constantly keeping itself fresh with new elements that fit perfectly, the lyrics are quirky in the best way and serve the themes of the album really intelligently and with enough of a hands-off approach in regard to meaning that it is particularly subjective in this case (much like David Bowie's "Heroes", the subjectivity of which I gushed about in it's own post). I just can't find a flaw in the album right now. It is such an overwhelmingly exciting listen, and every time I listen to it, or even just one of my favourites from the album on its own, I can't help but to grin like an idiot.
The way I feel when I listen to this album is why I love music. This is what it's about. It's impactful, and because I have a pessimistic interpretation of the album, I often find myself feeling both depressed and manic towards the end of the album. Smiling and dancing while sad tears well up in my eye. It's ecstasy and sorrow. It's a masterpiece.
I'll attempt to be restrained in my recommendations despite my urge to recommend it to everyone who can hear things, and with that sensibility in mind, I would still say this would work for a lot of people. Poptimists would probably love it, indie fans of most stripes will probably enjoy it, and I've seen fans of prog getting really into it as well. I think the fact that it is both catchy and immediate as well as incredibly thoughtful and dynamic really makes it hard to think of people that wouldn't enjoy it. Mostly though, if you like your music to be experimental in a way that rarely sacrifices it's immediate appeal, this is for you.
Note: this post was made for my website, and I believe that is the best way to read this post! For the linkphobes, I did my best to replicate the quality of the formatting here, but if you want to see the original, you can follow this link to check it out. Thanks and enjoy!
As I assemble my top 20 albums and songs from this year, I wanted to take the opportunity to highlight some songs and albums that did a very specific thing well this year. Some of these superlatives will be about the songs more objective qualities, while some will be about how they fit into my broader listening this year, but all of them, I feel, deserve attention for their own unique qualities.
If you want to listen to my favourites as you read along, I've made a companion playlist on Apple Music (with auto-synced versions available on Spotify and YouTube). Linked here!
Most underrated album of the year
Criteria: This is the album I feel has gone most unfairly under the radar. It might be an album that isn't talked about enough, or one that is talked about, but not as highly as I believe it should be. Or maybe even a combination of both.
Los Campesinos! - All Hell
Kind of like: Gang of Youths, Death Cab for Cutie
Songs to try: The Coin-Op Guillotine, A Psychic Wound, To Hell in a Handjob
If your thing is indie rock with great emo lyricism and a buried but noticeable punk streak, this album should absolutely be on your radar. This album is witty, depressing, masochistic, sadistic, frustrated, and so much more, all while still being an exciting and mostly coherent listen. It's one of those albums that has that perfect balance between the in-depth, something-new-every-listen approach and the immediate, fun, catchy approach which makes it great to listen to regardless of the level of focus you can afford it (although, as ever, I recommend a focused first listen).
Concept Album of the Year
Criteria: The album which I feel has the most interesting concept and/or execution of that concept which is explored over the course of it's runtime.
Honourable Mention: Lupe Fiasco - Samurai
Just an honourable mention here first. I didn't really connect with this album as much as I would have thought, and I think the execution of the concept seems a little lacking, at least on first few listens, but I couldn't talk about concepts of the year without discussing the album which dives into Amy Winehouse's hypothetical rap career. It's such an interesting concept, and I hope it is more embedded in the music than I can see after my first couple listens, because it's exactly the type of concept I'd love to get on board with.
Magdalena Bay - Imaginal Disk
Kind of like: Japanese Breakfast, a moodier Dua Lipa, Carly Rae Jepsen
Songs to try: Killing Time, Image, Love Is Everywhere
There's so much to love about this album, and you'll definitely find out more about that if you catch my top 20 albums list that'll be coming out sometime in the new year. Sticking to the album's concept though, the concept is somewhat open to interpretation I think, but I'm fairly confident in my personal reading of it, which is that it's an album about cultural assimilation of some kind. Broadly, it is undoubtedly about a transformation, but how sinister (or not) that transformation is is largely left up to the listener.
On first listen, I considered it a positive transformation, probably due to the album closing on the happy love song The Ballad of Matt & Mica, but on repeat listens I picked up on some less happy undertones. Or more accurately, undertones that were too happy. It gave me Stepford Wives vibes, and my current interpretation as of writing this is that the album is from the perspective of someone who undergoes a transformation from a regular human with flaws and expectations into an eerie, overly-smooth version of themselves, a Stepford Wife that fits in perfectly at the expense of individuality, in order to attain the "dream" of a spouse, a house, and kids to run around it.
With both interpretations, though, one thing (other than the broader theme of transformation) remains the same: excellence in execution. It's almost reminiscent of how David Bowie's "Heroes" similarly has various valid interpretations that all feel powerful (a phenomenon I wrote about here, if you feel like checking it out).
Boundary Breaker
Criteria: This one doesn't have to necessarily be a groundbreaking release, it just needs to force me out of my comfort zone. This is the album that introduced me to a genre or style of music that I previously considered in some way out of bounds.
Charli xcx - BRAT
Songs to try: 360, Von dutch, Talk talk
I have so much to say about this one. It's an incredible album with so much interesting stuff going on, and as I mentioned with the Magdalena Bay album, there'll be plenty more on my top 20 albums list coming soon, but for the purposes of this list, I'll keep it about what this album did that was new to me.
This wasn't quite my first electronic album -- for starters it's a broad enough term that you could argue anything with a synth falls under it -- but full on EDM was something I never thought I'd be able to enjoy, even when my concern of there generally not being any lyrics is addressed. So for that reason, when I saw Charli xcx starting to blow up in the build up to this album I just rolled my eyes dismissively and moved on. Then I kept hearing about it and got curious what all the fuss was about, so I watched the Von dutch video and... I still didn't get it. I thought the video was really cool, but the song itself did nothing for me. Then, a month or so later, I had the song on repeat and ended up listening to it over 20 times in a matter of days (which is a lot for me, I tend to like a bit more variety) and listening to every post-transformation Charli xcx album before this album released.
And that's the strange thing about this for me: it was Von dutch that did it for me. It wasn't something stripped back enough to be accessible like 360, and it wasn't something somewhat similar to the likes of The 1975's sound like Talk talk, for example. It wasn't even one of the ballads. It was the most abrasive and unapologetically electronic cut of the album outside of the closer 365 or maybe B2b (both of which are probably top 5 on the album for me too). Maybe we should chalk that up to Charli xcx being an extremely talented woman, or maybe it has something to do with the fact that some of her less noticeable influences align with my own. Either way, I couldn't be happier that I gave this album a shot. It really impressed me.
Although, I am now left with an itch for EDM-adjacent music that can match this album which also has some focus on lyrics and it turns out that just isn't that common from what I can tell, so I guess it's a mixed blessing.
Bop of the Year
Criteria: My favourite song for getting me up and moving. It's on the lighter, more upbeat side.
Honourable Mention: Kendrick Lamar - tv off
There weren't many bops this year that really blew me away, if I'm being totally honest. Espresso was a solid contender, but it was weaker than I would like for it to be my choice here. Thankfully though, Kendrick is here to supply (spoilers) two -- and arguably more -- absolutely generational bops. This is my slightly less beloved bop, but even this is chock-full of incredibly catchy bars, and that beat is just so fucking sweet, and the switch? Every single detail is exactly as it needs to be to succeed as a bop. Its never been so challenging to not move.
Kendrick Lamar - Not Like Us
The only person that can top Kendrick Lamar: K. Dot. Basically everything that I said about tv off can be said about Not Like Us, but the latter is also funnier, and feels more righteous, as it tears the biggest rapper alive (at the time, he's no longer alive) to shreds, calling him out for pedophilia (or at least close proximity to it), cultural appropriation, and exploitation of contemporaries.
It was the moment we knew, for sure, that the beef was done. Drake got cooked and Kendrick ate every crumb. It wasn't even close in the end. Everything just came together so perfectly on Kendrick's side as if he had been planning it all for years (which I wouldn't be too shocked by considering the impetus for the beef was seemingly a compliment? Just one that maybe implied that the "big three" were all on the same level?). And this song is the perfect cherry on top of his master-plan.
Euphoria told us Kendrick was here for the beef beyond the verse on Like That, 6:16 in LA told Drake he was here for the beef, Meet the Grahams told us why he was here for the beef, and Not Like Us made all those reasons accessible, fun, and, to the most success, funny. Without any of those previous steps, this might not have hit so hard, but after the severity of the claims was laid out so clearly in previous songs this one became both powerful and infectious.
Jam of the Year
Criteria: My favourite vibey, laid back song. Just a groovy, chill listen.
Honourable Mention: Charli xcx - So i
Okay, maybe this doesn't quite fit the description of a jam that I laid out above, but I think it's fair to say the song is a jam (unless you're one of those disgusting individuals who believe "ballad" is a distinct category. Those people make me sick). It's a pretty minimalist beat that props up a beautiful tribute to a friend and mentor who passed away. Frankly, this deserves some love from me purely on the basis that it gets me teary-eyed. Every time I dare to give this song my full attention the line about turning down an invite to stay for dinner punches me in the gut. It's such a mundane expression of regret, but that's exactly what makes it hit so hard, I think. The fact that everyone has been the person concerned they're overstaying their welcome, or not wanting to spend time with their loved ones for whatever reason and missed the chance to get even closer to them makes the lines critical of your actions in the same way they're critical of Charli's. It's a very powerful moment in a powerful song, and the whole minimalist sound of the track makes sure you feel it.
Kendrick Lamar - reincarnated
This is the perfect example of a hip-hop jam. A simple drum beat, a chill bassline to keep things moving, and restrained melodic hooks. It creates a beautiful backdrop to Kendrick's thoughtful commentary on how fame has influenced his predecessors towards evil and an undesirable death, to then turn that on him, as he reflects on the ways he is influenced by those same forces.
Banger of the Year
Criteria: My favourite song for giving me neck pain or hearing loss. The real blood-pumpers.
Honourable Mention: JPEGMAFIA - don't rely on other men
This is JPEGMAFIA at his abrasive best. The distortion on this track is downright ridiculous, but as ever Peggy knows how to get the balance perfect to make it sweet without going overboard and making it sickly. The Succession sample that runs through the song is bonkers, the lyrics (which aren't typically the focus with JPEGMAFIA's music due to the excellence of his production) are in-your-face and surprisingly catchy to me.
I think it probably helps that the song leans less into the rocky sound that the rest of the album has (as much as I love that sound), because Peggy has always excelled when it came to bangers. His tried and true maximalist sound is the perfect formula for hearing loss in hip-hop and I don't think an album of his would feel complete without at least one of these.
Charli xcx - Von dutch
I talked a bit about this in the Boundary Breaker section, so I'll keep this brief, but the special thing about this track is the production for me. It isn't a maximalist piece like the honourable mention at all, there are very few elements in this song, but the way the bass and vocals are distorted, and the presence that unsettling metallic shrieking sound that kicks in at the chorus has makes the mix seem so full but keeps things extremely memorable to the point where (if I was talented enough to create those sounds in the first place) I could probably recreate the song by memory and get it pretty accurate. For what it's worth, I believe 360 is very similar in that regard. If it wasn't clear that Charli and co. are masters of their craft before, I think the likes of this track settled it.
Favourite Finds of 2024
Criteria: My favourite album and song that I discovered this year that isn't a new release. It might be a massive release I only got around to listening to critically this year, or maybe it's a niche release that few people know about. So long as it wasn't initially released this year, but I only gave it a real listen this year, it counts.
Song pick
Madonna - Papa Don't Preach
If I hadn't gotten around to a proper listen of Madonna's music so late in the year, I probably would have made a think-piece on her legacy by now, because I was very shocked to find out just how huge and influential she was in her prime considering how little she seems to get mentioned now. Of course I knew she was an icon, and I knew there were a few songs I had heard in passing, and even a few that I quite liked to the limited extent I can when I'm not really paying attention to it, but I got the overwhelming feeling that we aren't giving Madonna her flowers nowadays.
This song in particular is probably pushing up against the boundaries of this superlative though, because this was always the Madonna song that stuck with me whenever I heard it on the radio, and I was already pretty familiar with it before my first critical listen (which did still come this year). I already knew I loved it, I just had to pay enough attention to pick out the details about why, and now I can point to the groovy, energetic bassline; the solid lyrics that incidentally highlight how new the abortion moral panic truly is; and Madonna's dynamic vocal performance that runs the gamut, switching seamlessly but impressively between a glitzy pop voice to an impassioned and strained pleading to a growl, giving the song a beautiful rising intensity. It's fun, it's catchy, it's got an interesting premise and some added depth if you're paying attention... Pop just doesn't get much better than this.
Album Pick
MF DOOM - MM.. FOOD
Kind of like: Lupe Fiasco, King Geedorah, Viktor Vaughn
Songs to try: Vomitspit, Rapp Snitch Knishes, Kookies
Does a hip-hop album with a classic sound that revolves around food metaphors and double entendres appeal to you? If it does, go nuts, this album is perfect for you. If it sounds a bit cheesy for your tastes, that's fair, I felt the same way at first. But regardless of how skeptical you may be of the album's theme, you'll be asking for seconds before you're done with the entrée. And those seconds will turn to minutes which will turn to hours as you dive deeper, picking up a new stroke of genius every time you give this album a listen.
I'm not exactly sure how many times I've listened to this album now, but I've been going back to it often throughout the year after my first listen early in the year and I still don't feel like I've scratched the surface. I've still only listened to a handful of DOOM's albums for this reason, they're all just so dense that every album, especially this one, is a gift that keeps on giving. Whenever I think about listening to a new album of his, I end up deciding to listen to the albums I already know because I know there's still some novelty buried away in there and I already know I love it. It's either the best curse or worst blessing I could ask for, but either way I'm thankful to my past self for giving me a chance to fall in love with it.
So there are my picks! As mentioned earlier, a top 20 albums will be coming in the new year if you still want to hear more about my favourites of the year, and I'll also try to get a top 20 songs list done before January is over too. And if you want an easy way to listen to the stuff I mentioned here, here's the link again to the companion playlist on Apple Music, Spotify, and YouTube, as well as at the top of the page (note: there may be some sync errors on the latter two services). Enjoy!
A lot of bands claim that they do all sorts of music, that they aren't tied to genre, that they are wayfarers, explorers of all music has to offer. But no popular band quite walks the walk like The 1975 do. They are still anchored loosely to the indie-pop sphere, but they have also gone quite deep into electronic music, dabbled in jazz, gone full on R&B, and much more. That makes them a great band to get familiar with if you want to use indie music as a launching pad to listen to other genres, as you get to taste test a banquet of genres and styles to see what appeals immediately and explore it. So if you want to learn more about the band or just generally read my ramblings about this band's discography, then you're in the right place.
The 1975
Kind of like: R.E.M, The Cure (the poppy stuff), Wallows, Declan McKenna
Songs to try: Chocolate, The City, Robbers, Menswear
Click here for the full feature
i like it when you sleep, for you are so beautiful yet so unaware of it
Kind of like: Michael Jackson, The Human League, Sell-out era Bowie, Tears For Fears
Songs to try: The Sound (trust me, give it a real chance), Paris, Somebody Else
Click here for the full feature
A Brief Inquiry Into Online Relationships
Kind of like: Stranger in the Alps by Phoebe Bridgers, post-2010 Paramore, Jubilee by Japanese Breakfast, The Japanese House
Songs to try: Love It If We Made It, Sincerity Is Scary, I Like America & America Likes Me
Click here for the full feature
Notes On a Conditional Form
Kind of like: Burial, late Radiohead, A Brief Inquiry Into Online Relationships... (idk, this album is a lot)
Songs to try: If You're Too Shy (Let Me Know), What Should I Say, People
Click here for the full feature
Being Funny In a Foreign Language
Kind of like: Bleachers, late Vampire Weekend, Billie Joel
Songs to try: Part of the Band, Oh Caroline, I'm In Love With You
So now that I've listened to and written about every mainline Cure album, giving recommendations on whether or not you should listen, it's about time I made it all a little more palatable. That was the purpose of this series to begin with after all. So if you're interested in listening to The Cure, but don't know where to start, this is the perfect post for you, because I'll be giving you three different roadmaps depending on what you want from the band.
"I want to listen to pretty much everything"
If you really want to dive deep into the band's discography, you're gonna need to break it down a bit if you don't have a project like this to keep you motivated. Even if you aren't bothered about paying close attention to the music and are happy for it to be on in the background, it's probably going to be a multi-day thing even if you're very dedicated, so it can get overwhelming without some sort of anchor. So here are my suggested roadmaps for those of you who want to swim the same deep water as me:
As you can see, I recommend the first album most people listen to is Disintegration. Maybe a more specific type of person would be better suited to a different album for starters, but for most people I'd say not only is this The Cure at their best, but it's also a very good tonal intersection of the band's most prolific sounds.
From there, you might want something poppier, or something darker, and for each of those desires I've laid out a unique path you can take. To be clear, the more gothic path starts with the most recommendable album for a fan of gothic music, not the next most gothic album from Disintegration. Same with the poppier section. That means that it isn't really possible to use this guide fluidly, switching from path to path, but of course, it's a resource, so you can absolutely gauge how much I recommend an album based on this guide and take things into your own hands to shake it up.
I also just want to again point out how difficult I find it to recommend Wild Mood Swings to anyone. It was rough. Genuinely one of the most bafflingly bad musical experiences I've had. It genuinely has a place in my musical hall of pain. And that is subjective, but even thinking more objectively about who might enjoy it outside of that, I can not for the life of me figure out who it is that likes that album. If you've already listened to everything else and either absolutely loved even your least favourite album or just have a little masochistic curiosity about it, I guess I'd hesitantly say give it a try, but under no other circumstances would I recommend listening to Wild Mood Swings. I could write a whole post on how uniquely and punishingly bad that album is.
"I just want to listen to their best stuff"
This one is simple enough. If you're just trying to get a broad overview, I'd recommend 4 albums: The Head on the Door, Disintegration, Wish, and Pornography. I'd somewhat recommend them in that order, simply because I think that eases you into the less inviting sound of Pornography, but it's not that big of a deal if you listen outside of that order. Just be aware that Pornography is an acquired taste.
"I like Friday, I'm In Love"
Hey, me too!
As a bonus one, if the only thing you've really heard is Friday, I'm In Love or Boys Don't Cry and want to hear more like that, their poppier albums are The Head on the Door; Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me; and Wish. All of those albums have darker moments though, which should allow you to dip your toes in and see if it's for you. Remember, there's no shame in not connecting with something. Too often I see people trying to force themselves to enjoy something for one reason or another, but there will always be another band/artist that you can connect with more whose music will be a far better use of your time and passion. If you only like the hits here, take those and look for your next obsession elsewhere and don't think twice about it.
A parting note
So that's my guide to The Cure! They very quickly rocketed up my Last.fm most scrobbled artist after this project. I think they're 6th all of a sudden? Anyway, I hope someone has found it useful in one way or another. I don't want to make the mistake of making a commitment about what my next post will be, but I have a big series (even bigger than this) planned. Maybe the next post will be from that series, but more likely it'll be a one-off to prevent me from just going radio-silent while I work on that big project.
A final note before I leave this project behind for good: I know long-form content like this isn't the most consumable, and I'm competing with a ton of shorter, dopamine-inducing stuff for your attention, both on this site and others, and I've made an effort to make my stuff more consumable (for example, that's why this series has been split into parts as opposed to being one big post), but ultimately there's only so much I can cut down before it all becomes a bit pointless to me. So, if you're reading this, thanks for forgoing the dopamine for a second to make this worthwhile.
That's all I got. Now onto this new project that will probably keep me busy until the end of the year.
At the time of writing, this is the last 3 albums The Cure have released. There are hints of a new album on the horizon, but from the sounds of it that's nothing new. So how did the band get on with their final releases: Bloodflowers, The Cure, and 4:13 Dream? Do they get things back on track and end their discography on a high? Or do they keep struggling to live up to their own name? Let's get into it.
Bloodflowers
Bloodflowers marks a return to the gothic stylings of Disintegration and their earlier albums, but this time with broad alternative rock overtones, and it's a reasonable return to form if you ask me. It's not a 4th Cure masterpiece in my opinion, but it is a great album which restored my faith in the band for this last 3 album stretch, which is exactly what I needed after Wild Mood Swings.
The album, if it revolves around anything, revolves around the dread that Robert Smith feels regarding the first digit of his age changing, which is the second time such a theme has been explored in an album by The Cure, but the first time was with Disintegration where it wasn't really the focus, and if they do it this well, they can do it every decade for all I care. The existential dread is palpable across the album, and it provides the project with a sense of direction that was sorely lacking in not only Wild Mood Swings, but also Wish before it.
It's definitely the highlight of this final phase of The Cure, and is worth a listen as the most successful representative for this alternative rock version of The Cure, but it's comfortably outside the realm of a must listen in my opinion.
The Cure
It's certainly a bold move making a self-titled album this late into their career, long after their peak in terms of both popularity and influence. To define yourself based on a project you are releasing in the midst of your downfall in the public eye is definitely a strange move, but we should be used to strange moves by The Cure by now, for better and for worse.
In this case, it's whatever. It feels a bit wasteful, not necessarily because of it's quality, but because it isn't really that musically representative of any of The Cure's music except the last three albums, none of which are really their classics. It's a nitpick, but for me, I would have expected a sort of celebration of all the band were given the self-title, but it's just the later years alt-rock of the last album and (spoilers) their final album. The alt-rock ranges from below average to great in my opinion, tending towards pretty good, so that's not the issue, I just wish they didn't waste their self-title on just another album.
There's a reason I'm spending so much time writing about the title though. I really don't know what to say about the music. It's fine, perfectly listenable, enjoyable at times, and it sounds like The Cure doing alt-rock. I just didn't really find anything to latch onto that strongly. I guess Robert Smith is angrier here than he has been, if that appeals to you. I don't know, it's fine, it's a fine album that some people might really love, definitely worth listening to if you want to listen to The Cure (the band), so that's one up on The Top and Wild Mood Swings, but beyond saying I can recommend it, I can't really place it above any other albums on the "you need to hear this" ranking.
4:13 Dream
I hate to say it, but I think as I reached the end of this project, both I and the band (at time of subsequent releases) lost steam. Once again, I don't know what to say about the album. It's more slightly experimental alt-rock from The Cure, and maybe it's the familiarity talking, but it feels like it sounds exactly like you'd expect. There are a few songs I really liked from this so maybe it's worth listening to for the sake of them, because the songs I thought were pretty good made up around half the runtime, but again, I wouldn't rush to listen to this album.
I hope that the album they are supposed to be dropping at some point soon is good because as it stands their discography ends with a bit of a whimper, and if it weren't for the fact I was also doing this blog, I would have been entirely disappointed after having listened to their daunting discography only to have it end on a run of albums that, after my early listens, is just... Fine. It's like climbing Everest only to find yourself on the top of a solid hill. Sure, it wasn't for nothing, but the payoff is underwhelming.
Anyway, this album is in the same sort of territory as the self-titled album. It's worth getting around to if you want to listen to more Cure, but not worth listening to ahead of anything else that isn't torture.
Tomorrow...
I'm going to post a roadmap to The Cure for anyone interested tomorrow, 10:15 Saturday night because I'm easily amused. I'll give you a recommended listening order based on a few different motivations to listen to The Cure, so it's not gonna be a one-size-fits-all thing. That strikes me as pointless. This was all a lot harder to do than I expected so I really hope someone finds it useful.
A Guide to The Cure, Pt. III: The Wild Mood Swings Phase
(Happy Friday the 13th)
Once The Cure had their pop urges suitably satiated, the band would become a lot more erratic. It was through this chaos, though, that they made the biggest name for themselves; at least as far as legacy is concerned. Despite that though, the chaos also seemed to spell the end for the band as an icon of the industry, as the clear intention of their previous phases gave way for wild mood swings that are difficult to follow chronologically for anyone but the biggest of fans...
Disintegration
This is their magnum opus as far as albums are concerned. I don't think that is even remotely controversial for me to say. They have other great albums, but this is Thriller for goths. Every single song is an absolutely beloved masterpiece. Lovesong, Pictures Of You, The Same Deep Water As You, Fascination Street, the title track... I could go on but I'd quite literally be reading out the track list.
But this isn't just a quasi-greatest-hits album. It has a clear intention and a clear theme: the disintegration of a long-term relationship. With a particular focus on what the protagonist did to fuck it up. The title track is, fittingly, the best example of this theme.
So I leave you with photographs
Pictures of trickery
Stains on the carpet and stains on the scenery
Songs about happiness murmured in dreams
When we both of us knew
How the ending would be
It's definitely a blend of the two different styles of The Cure to this point, using each style where appropriate and blending it together seamlessly and that means that it is not only (probably) the fan-favourite, but the best entry point for anyone interested in The Cure. But be warned: it is pretty depressing. If you're used to depressing music it won't be anything unbearable, but if the only reason you want to listen to The Cure is because you've heard Boys Don't Cry and Friday, I'm In Love, maybe start elsewhere.
Wish
Speaking of Friday, I'm In Love... Wish is a stranger album than I expected, in all honesty. That's on me, I should know better by this point than to expect anything from The Cure. The album covered a lot more sonic ground than I thought it would. I was expecting it to be the-Friday-I'm-In-Love-album, filled to the brim with pop songs. But I was wrong: this is all over the place in a way that remains impressively cohesive. It's a new balance of their gothic and new wave sounds that places them more, for most of the album, in regular alternative rock territory.
It is alternative rock that is definitely worth a listen though, and The Cure fit in that more conventional sound really well, as you might expect, and of course it features their biggest hit, and if we're being honest, one of their best songs in Friday, I'm In Love. So it's definitely worth an early listen, but isn't really an essential album. If you want to explore the band beyond the essentials, though, this should be one of the first album's you try.
Wild Mood Swings
Yikes. As mentioned once already in this series, I always try to take up the philosophy of "I'm here to talk about why someone might like an album not why I don't", but
fucking
YIKES
It's just not worth listening to. It's innovative in it's badness though. It starts with a hopeful sign in the form of Want, a downright good Cure opener, but the quality falls off a cliff from there. At times it feels like The Cure playing against all their strengths, which is fairly normal with band's falling off this hard and this quick, but interestingly there are also moments where it sounds like one of those smug parodies. You know, the ones on TikTok and stuff where they do a really flattened impression of an artist they don't really know well or like enough to pull off with that smugness that suggests they think they nailed it and are so much better than them? The Smiths get it quite a lot. This album feels like that at times too. And that is interesting to me, because it isn't that far removed from the likes of Disintegration, and to a lesser, but still very relevant extent, Wish, great albums that channel the very stylings that they are failing miserably to reproduce at times.
I can't say I know exactly what went wrong, but the album was one of the most difficult listening experiences I remember having. It was long, it was mostly awful, the expectations were set high by the opener to make it all seem worse, and they even tease you with a slight improvement halfway through with Mint Car and Jupiter Crash, songs that wouldn't fit in with the best of the band, but would make the album listenable, but even that small glimpse of quality is temporary, and is quickly snatched away. I can only recommend this album to people who like autopsies, because the only constant throughout the album is the questioning of what exactly went wrong. I'm sure there's at least one fan out there that swears by this, but I don't see how that isn't just Stockholm Syndrome. I straight up do not recommend listening to this album. Just listen to Want, Mint Car, and Jupiter Crashing and spend your saved hour more wisely.
Next Week...
Next week will be the waning crescent phase. I'm going to post that next Friday, the 20th (less spooky) September 2024 at midnight BST. If you're far enough in the future, how's it all going? We all still doing bad but not apocalyptically bad? Man, I sure hope we're content and emotionless. That's the dream. Oh, and you can check that post out already. Just you, none of my fellow pastfolk.
After making three consecutively darker records back to back to back, it was time for The Cure to try something else. The next few years would see them experiment with poppier sounds, initially through singles and EPs, to try and create a more accessible sound, but one that still feels true to them. A radical departure in fashion atop the same, familiar skin. The singles they would release (and later compile into the album-length project Japanese Whispers) had mixed results, but with a few fan favourites under their belt with this new sound, they felt ready to make a full album of songs headed in this bold new direction.
The Top
They weren't ready to make a full album of songs headed in this bold new direction.
I generally try to avoid value judgements like that in my writing. I prefer to describe an album's appeal as opposed to it's lack, but this one was a rough listen. I saw some of the reviews heading into this and they didn't paint a very pretty picture, but, especially after the first few tracks were decent (if a little lacking in personality), I was holding out hope that it would give me something to appreciate. It just didn't though. After those first two tracks, I found there to be a steep drop in quality that didn't reverse itself for the rest of the album.
I do think it's very possible for some to enjoy this album though, so long as it's the right person going into it with the right mindset. First, it has to be someone that doesn't mind gimmicky production and songwriting, because there is a lot of that and it can get pretty on the nose. Second, you have to go into it with no pre-conceived notions of how a Cure album sounds. Even heading into this album with the knowledge of both their famous pop sound and their cult classic goth sound, I was not prepared for something that sounded this much like an altogether different band.
So in case it isn't clear already, I really don't recommend this as one of the first albums you listen to of The Cure. Except for maybe in the instance where you know that no matter what you want to listen to all of their discography and want to put this first so it won't ruin your appetite for more as you get the bad outliers out of the way first.
The Head On the Door
If anybody ever said that The Cure weren't elusive, they lied. Right after The Cure's biggest failure to date comes a candidate for their biggest triumph. The Head On the Door is not just a must-listen within The Cure's discography, but also within New Wave as a whole. goth rock and new wave are absolutely very different subgenres, but this album really highlights how transferable the skills are between them. Both support strange and emotive vocalists very well, and both ask a lot of their lyricists, albeit in different ways. Both are also more interested in the soundscape than technical ability when it comes to the instrumentation, although sometimes those two goals align in both styles.
And where there is a stark difference, the band prove able to manage brilliantly. Perhaps it's just my lack of exposure to the gothic sound and therefore it's intricacies, but I feel as though new wave demands more experimentation, and tracks like The Blood prove that this new Cure is capable of striking the balance required between keeping things fresh and ensuring the album comes together well as a cohesive project. I mentioned that different things are required lyrically between the two styles, and Robert Smith makes the necessary adjustments very naturally here. He seems extremely comfortable writing hooky choruses for New Wave as he does rhymeless literary marvels for Goth Rock.
As it stands, there is only one album of The Cure's that I'd recommend as the average listener's first ahead of this one (that album is yet to come), and if you just want to hear the poppier stuff, this is comfortably the best of that bunch for me, even if many of the songs have a goth rock sound sprinkled in.
Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me
I'm going to be totally honest, I'm not sure what to say about this album. Not because it's bland, far from it. Just because there's so much going on that it feels difficult to define. It also doesn't really fit cleanly into any narrative I have going on here.
It feels like a lot of fun was had putting this album together, and probably skews the poppiest of all their albums, but it's also very chaotic, with a lot of songs being outliers to that general skew. Confusingly, their opener is amongst those massive outliers, with a prog-rocky guitar solo intro, that leads into an album very nicely, but not necessarily this album. It's far from bad, but tonally it resembles a compilation album. An assortment of sounds that feel navigated based on raw intuition and what the band thought would be fun. That approach has bundles of charm, but you're going to struggle to leave a lasting impression with it.
That being said, some of the very best The Cure has to offer finds itself amongst this strange project. Just Like Heaven was a hit for a reason, Why Can't I Be You is one of their most endearing songs, previously mentioned opener The Kiss is an amazing starter, and as silly as it is, I love Hot Hot Hot!!!. But there in lies the issue with recommending this album: all I have to say about it is in relation to the individual songs. This album has value to fans of The Cure, because it's just them trying a bunch of different things, so there is very little for someone who isn't already familiar with the band to latch onto. It's a fun listen, but I'd recommend leaving this one until you've heard a few albums of theirs already.
Next Week...
Next week will be the wild mood swings phase. That's going to be released on Friday the 13th (spooky) September 2024 at midnight BST. If you're far enough in the future, you can already check it out you privileged scamp, you!
The Cure have always been stylistically gothic, and have always had elements of gothicism in their music, but for many (including myself before I started getting into them properly) they are musically defined in contrast to that aesthetic. The group of goths making upbeat pop music is the version of The Cure most people know. Sandwiched between the new-wave hit Boy's Don't Cry and their later cult-pop resurgence, though, is a full-on goth phase which made it all the way to the music itself. Throughout this phase, they built the groundwork for what would become their strange, elusive legacy, starting with
Seventeen Seconds
I feel comfortable suggesting that this is the beginning of The Cure's musical goth phase, but it is worth adding the caveat that there is still a healthy dose of new-wave pep left over from their first outings here. It makes for a very interesting listen and a fantastic introduction to this version of The Cure for the fans of the poppier stuff that want to give their darker stuff a try. It's a balance that I think is achieved with more perceivable intention on later releases, but whether it was a case of residual flavour being incidentally left in the wok, or whether this was seasoned purposely to include that taste, it makes for a good listen.
It's not an album I'd consider one of the best from The Cure, but it is just one step below that, I would say. A must-listen for a prospective Cure fan, but not a must-listen as a passerby. And it serves a very useful purpose in their discography as the transition album between two very disparate styles within alternative music, and it navigates that chasm with impressive grace.
Faith
The last of the remnants of joy have been erased here. This is a cold, gothic landscape. This album is the first time The Cure were truly, and entirely gothic. There's a melancholy to the sound here, as if the instruments were despondent and going through the motions. To be clear, that isn't at all a criticism. What it's lacking in thrills, it offers in emotional resonance for those wanting to wallow in their misery, as well as a platform for Robert Smith's expressive vocal performances and cryptic lyricism.
It's a great album, but the unfortunate fact for me is that it is still fairly difficult to recommend. It's a consistently good album, and the band seem comfortable in their new skin, but there isn't a clear highlight on this album. They're comfortable, but maybe not confident enough to really knock anyone's socks off yet. At least in my opinion. But that would soon change with their next album:
Pornography
When even remote tribes that got given access to the internet get hooked on your album, you know you've done something right. (Note to self: consider the passage of time when making jokes about trending topics)
In my opinion, this is the first truly great album The Cure have made. They took the clear, focused intent of the previous album and elevated it to the point that they made a masterpiece. The simple instrumentals of Faith, as good as they were on that album, give way to a more affecting, oppressive, borderline overwhelming soundscape that sticks with you like nothing they've made to this point, perhaps with the exception of an individual song here and there.
To put it simply, The Cure finally feel like they've found a unique identity. I referred to Faith as the point in which they feel comfortable in their skin, and to continue that metaphor, Pornography feels, ironically, like they've found the clothes they like. Feeling comfortable in your skin is important, but your skin doesn't say a whole lot about you as a person. Your style though? That can say a lot about who you are and who you want to be. It's a strong form of identity affirmation and communication, and that is the importance of this album. Anyone could have come along and made Faith, but only The Cure could have made Pornography
As far as recommendations go, I think this one is pretty straightforward: if you have any interest in The Cure's goth rock stuff, this is required listening. It's easily in the top 3 must-listen albums from them for me.
Next Week...
Next week will be the pop phase. That's to be released on 6th September 2024 at midnight BST. If you're far enough in the future, congrats! It's out already!
The Cure's discography is a very daunting one. Their music is incredible, but they have the tendency to drop the occasional stinker of an album, and there are some very distinct and disparate styles on display in their music... It's a bit of a hassle figuring out where to begin and where to go from there, and I for one struggled to find good resources for it, so whether you're suffering from the illness yourself, or whether you've long since beaten the disease and just want to read my thoughts, here's The Cure as I see it.
Three Imaginary Boys
At this point you might be wondering why I called something an prologue when I'm beginning the exact same way I usually would, just with maybe a bit of a different style of preamble. Well, that's because this album feels like exactly that: a prologue. It's an album that teases what will soon be key facets of The Cure's sound going forward, on tracks such as the ironically peppy depiction of boredom and isolation on standout track 10:15 Saturday Night, and the uneasy Subway Song, but generally, this album is extremely under-cooked, even by the standards of the typical debut. The production generally feels flat, the songs at their core feel mostly rushed, and it just feels like very little care was put into it, which undoes the positives gained through the glimmers of personality and continues to drag it down beyond that. I would recommend leaving this until after you've heard some of the highlights that we'll end up discussing later in this series. It's far from unlistenable, but pretty close and cozy with the label of "uninspired". The best is definitely to come.
So Three Imaginary Boys is a little disappointing, but I would be remiss if I didn't discuss the massive improvement that came right between the release of their debut and their radical shift in sound...
Boys Don't Cry
The Cure's first pop outing was a classic. That's insane, but it's so very true. It isn't a million miles away from Three Imaginary Boys, the mere difference between post-punk and new wave, but it's enough to make that gothic edge interesting. The song itself is only a slight twist on a well-covered concept: a breakup song but from the explicit perspective of a man who has been so effectively indoctrinated into patriarchal thinking that he won't (or perhaps can't) even express emotions when it could mean closure or, at best, redemption. He refuses to accept his guilt, turning away from it because he doesn't see it's use. He denies his love because it doesn't benefit him anymore. He hides the tears in his eyes because "boys don't cry". It's conceptually resonant while also being a great critique of patriarchal thinking and a great pop song to boot. To be clear, I won't be covering every song, EP, or album released by The Cure, but this is too important a moment in their history to overlook: their first big hit and their first foray into what would become their defining sound in the mainstream.
Going Forward
The next part in this series will be released tomorrow. From then on, these posts will go live weekly, same bat-time, same bat-place, until we've covered their entire discography. Don't worry though, impatient audience, this one is an outlier. We aren't doing this an album at a time. I'll be breaking it down into chunks based on the sound of the given run, so the next one will encompass the entirety of their first gothic rock run. At the end, I'll try to give some sort of roadmap for people trying to get into The Cure; which albums to start with, where to go from there, all that jazz. Thanks for reading, and I hope this ends up being useful to you!
