★★January albums★★
1. Rosalía - Los Ángeles - Flamenco/Folk - 2017. Beautifully performed. I think the album would have benefitted from a little more conventional song structures, though. It was a bit formless, so it made it a little tough to latch onto. ★★★½
2. Fugazi - Repeater - Post Hardcore - 1990. I'm not too experienced with these genres, so it'll take some getting used to for me. I liked it, didn't love it on first listen. Two Beats Off was pretty dope, though. ★★★
3. Modest Mouse - The Lonesome Crowded West - Indie Rock - 1997. I didn't like this. Really didn't like the singer and the guitar riffs didn't make up enough for it. Wasn't irredeemable, but I won't be going back to this. ★★
4. Frank Zappa - Hot Rats - Jazz Rock/Jazz Fusion - 1969. I've been intimidated to get into Frank Zappa's catalogue because I never know where to start. So I just picked one and stuck with it. It was awesome. I thought there'd be more vocals for some reason, but that's okay. Great jams throughout the entire thing. ★★★★
5. Swans - Cop - Industrial/No wave- 1984. I love Swans, but there a couple albums that I haven't yet gotten into. Probably the most brutal thing I've heard from them so far. ★★★½
6. SZA - CTRL - Alternative R&B - 2017. She's got a really cool voice. I do wish the hooks were stronger, but this has me interested in seeing how she progresses. ★★★
7. Joanna Newsom - Divers - Chamber Folk/Singer-Songwriter - 2015. Listening to this was like listening to the soundtrack of fairytales. Good stuff. ★★★★
8. Pixies - Doolittle - Alt Rock/Indie Rock - 1989. I was super caught off guard by how energetic and raw they could be. Didn't expect second song in the dude to be screaming his face off. Luckily, I love that shit. It's not all that, though. There's a balance. ★★★★
9. Morbid Angel - Kingdoms Disdained - Death Metal - 2017. I'm pretty sure I saw a person or two call this a return to form. Maybe? It's definitely better than Illud but it's still pretty generic. Other than a few spots, I can't even remember the riffs I heard. ★★½
10. Aphex Twin - Selected Ambient Works 88-92 - Ambient Techno/IDM - 1992. The first 5 songs bored me. But when song 6 hit, the rest of the album kept my interest. ★★★½
11. Brian Eno - Another Green World - Art Rock - 1975. I like expiremental stuff, but sadly there weren't too many ideas that grabbed me on first listen. Maybe if I revisit. ★★½
12. Smashing Pumpkins - Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness - Alternative Rock - 1995. This could shoot up a whole star if the singer wasn't so annoying. He's got that nasally Dave Mustaine thing but manages to be worse for me. I really liked the music behind him, though. ★★★½
13. Migos - Culture - Trap - 2017. I knew I wasn't going to like this and I did it anyway. Mistake. ★
14. Justin Timberlake - Futuresex/Lovesounds - Pop - 2006. Not really sure why I never got around to this, considering I adore 20/20. But his new song inspired me to. It's pretty good. I still like 20/20 more though. ★★★★
15. Talk Talk - Laughing Stock - Post Rock/Experimental Rock - 1991. I accidentally listened to this on shuffle, so I don't know how the album flows. But I enjoyed what I heard quite a bit. ★★★★
16. Shining - V - Halmstad - Depressive Black Metal - 2007. The moments I liked from their new album inspired me to listen to another one. This is a lot more consistent. It's lacking the truly soul chilling moments that the new album has, but it's still a good listen. ★★★½
17. Depeche Mode - Violator - Synthpop - 1990. Enjoyed this the whole way through. I can see repeated listens improving the score. ★★★★
18. Cyhi da Prynce - No Dope on Sundays - Southern Hip Hop - 2017. You got a mix of southern/trap bangers on here and more jazzy and traditional type beats here. I actually like the trap bangers more. The whole package was good, though. ★★★½
19. Charles Mingus - Mingus Ah Um - Post Bop - 1959. I've heard things off this before, like Pork Pie Hat. But for some reason jazz just isn't a genre I seek out albums. I don't know why it isn't, because jazz is fantastic. As is this release. ★★★★½
20. Revered Bizarre - In The Rectory of the Bizarre Reverend - Doom Metal - 2002. I like the singer. The riffs are generic, though, aside from Sodoma Sunrise. Decent riffs, but you can get them better elsewhere. ★★★
21. Coheed and Cambria - Good Apollo Volume 1 - Alt Rock/Progressive Rock - 2005. Yeah I'm not putting the whole title lol. Anyway, I thought that I would like this despite Claudio's voice, because Welcome Home is a banger. Nope. The album is completely uninteresting beyond that song. ★½
22. Judas Priest - Sad Wings of Destiny - Heavy Metal - 1976. Good album. Great pipes. ★★★½
23. Motorhead - Overkill - Heavy Metal - 1979. The passing of Fast Eddie inspired me to finally listen to a Motorhead album through and through. I usually listen to their choice cuts. I love the almost speed metal sound this has. I hope some bands, if just in the underground, continue this style of music. ★★★★
24. Beastie Boys - Paul's Boutique - East Coast Hip Hop - 1989. I started off not liking this because of the MCs. But as it went on, I was warming up to them. I really like the tracks behind them. There was one that was pretty much a rock song. Loved it. Too bad nu metal wasn't more like that track. ★★★★
25. Alvvays - Antisocialites - Jangle Pop/Indie Pop - 2017. A good, sweet sounding album. ★★★½
26. Protomartyr - Relatives in Descent - Post-Punk - 2017. Not much to say other than this was great and I'll be revisiting this a lot. ★★★★
27. Solefald - In Hamornia Universali - Progressive Metal - 2003. Tons of cool moments throughout the album. I do feel that some of the songs feel like they try to jump around a little too much, which is something you risk with progressive metal. If they can take their ideas, flesh them out and let them breathe, having their songs keep more of a theme within itself, then they'll have perfected their formula in my eyes (ears rather). ★★★½
28. Otis Spann - The Biggest Thing Since Colossus - Blues - 1969. ★★★★
29. Rome - Masse Mensch Material - Neofolk/Martial Industrial - 2008. Solid overall. Some boring moments, some really good ones. Even during the more boring moments it still sounds good. ★★★
30. Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - Tender Prey - Post-Punk/Gothic Rock - 1988. The ending of the opening track should have been shortened a little, but otherwise this was pretty much perfect. The next couple entries might be Nick Cave because I don't want to listen to anything else right now. ★★★★½
31. Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - The Good Son - Singer/Songwriter/Gothic Rock - 1990. Enjoyable, but a little too piano ballady. The Witness Song, though, was amazing. ★★★½
32. Prurient - Rainbow Mirror - Drone/Dark Ambient - 2017. I was bruh.jpg the entire time listening to this. I felt like I was super impatient, waiting for class to end sitting uncomfortably in my seat because I was so fucking bored. I loved Frozen Niagara Falls but I have to question why this album was even made. It does absolutely nothing to justify its 3 hour and 20 minute length. ★
33. Iglooghost - Neō Wax Bloom - UK Bass/Wonky - 2017. Enjoyable, but it felt a little too hyperactive. It felt like the music was trying to show you all of its ideas at once because it was afraid it would forget about them. ★★★
34. Motorhead - Ace of Spades - Heavy Metal - 1980. Frontloaded (come on, it starts with the title track) but awesome. ★★★★
35. Gost - Behemoth - Synthwave/Horror Synth - 2015. There's a good mix of dancy stuff and horror stuff. The changes can be a little jarring, but this type of music is pretty cool. ★★★½
36. Gost - Non Paradisi - Synthwave/Horror Synth - 2016. Pretty much the exact sentiments as Behemoth. I'm hyped for the new album but also hoping there'll be a slight change up. ★★★½
37. The Birthday Party - Prayers on Fire - Post-Punk/Noise Rock - 1981. Precursor to The Bad Seeds. Take that and make it more wild and freakier, and you'll have an idea. It's a pretty interesting album having come out when it did. Ultimately I do prefer the more refined Bad Seeds, but this is fun. ★★★½
38. Minutemen - Double Nickels on the Dime - Post-Punk/Punk Rock - 1984. Enjoyable and fun album, but it was too long. Shave it down to having more of the highlights. ★★★½
39. Asphyx - Last One on Earth - Death Metal - 1992. There's something about MvD's vocals. I can't pinpoint it, but I always like hearing him. Some of the verse riffing can get a little forgettable, but their riff changeup game is on point. Lots of cool entertaining tempo changes. Not really in a prog metal/rock way. Just, idk, changes. ★★★★
40. PJ Harvey - Let England Shake - Singer-Songwriter/Art Rock - 2011. Didn't have many thoughts while this was playing. It was nice. ★★★
41. Tomahawk - Mit Gas - Experimental Rock - 2003. ★★★½
42. Moses Sumney - Aromanticism - Art Pop - 2017. I actually previewed a song a while ago because I got this from Vinyl Me Please. But I finally listened to it (no access to my physical music collection atm). Stunningly beautiful. I hope this guy gets more shine. ★★★★
43. U.S. Maple - Acre Thrills - Experimental Rock - 2001. The music of this album never really gained any momentum. I felt like I was always waiting for a song to start. And the singer's style was like he was struggling to breathe, or was shivering cold. Not a fan. ★★
44. Insomnium - Winter's Gate - Melodic Death Metal - 2016. Well performed and I can't see why a fan of the genre wouldn't like this. Unfortunately for me I don't really like the melodic death metal where there're epic leads at the forefront of everything. I saw Edge of Sanity mentions so I got excited, but I didn't get that from this. EoS has more melody built into their riffs instead of relying on leads to carry all the melody. ★★★
45. Sufjan Stevens - Michigan - Chamber Folk/Singer-Songwriter - 2003. Very similar to Illinois (or the other way since this came first). Not as good, but that isn't this albums fault. It's still really good, though. Makes me want more state themed albums from him. ★★★★
46. Popol Vuh - Hosianna Mantra - Neoclassical New Age - 1972. ★★★½
47. Portal - Outre - Death Metal - 2007. I love the oppressive feeling, the dissonant riffs, their overall aesthetic, but the song writing could use some improving. ★★★
48. Deltron 3030 - Deltron 3030 - Experimental Hip Hop - 2000. ★★★½
49. Open Mike Eagle - Brick Body Kids Still Daydream - Experimental Hip Hop - 2017. ★★★½
50. Pavement - Slanted and Enchanted - Indie Rock/Noise Pop - 1992. ★★★
51. Travis Scott - Rodeo - Trap Rap - 2015. I liked this a lot for what it is. Remove the vocal effects, though, and I'm listening to this regularly. ★★★½
52. Jay Z - The Black Album - East Coast Hip Hop - 2003. Good rapping, good beats. But for some reason I can't figure out why I'm not loving it. Same with all Jay. I guess you just can't love everything. This is good, though, don't get me wrong. ★★★
53. Le Mans - Saudade - Indie Pop/Indie Folk - 1996 ★★★
54. Uplift Spice - Omegarhythm - J-Pop/Punk Rock - Energetic jpoppy punk. Singing is a little too high pitched for me, though. ★★★
55. Lô Borges - A Via Láctea - Singer-Songwriter/Progressive Pop - 1979. ★★★
56. Big Star - Radio City - Power Pop/Pop Rock - 1974. ★★★½
57. Nick Drake - Pink Moon - Contemporary Folk/Singer-Songwriter - 1972. ★★★★
58. Linda Martini - Olhos de Mongol - Noise Rock/Post Rock - 2006. ★★★½
59. Alice Coltrane featuring Pharaoh Sanders - Journey in Satchidananda - Sprititual Jazz - 1971. ★★★★½
60. Yo La Tengo - I Can Hear the Heart Beating as One - Indie Rock/Noise Pop - 1997. ★★★½
61. Justin Timberlake - Justified - Pop/R&B - 2002. ★★★½
62. Nick Drake - Bryter Layter - Contemporary Folk - 1970 - ★★★½
63. Karl Denson's Tiny Universe - New Ammo - Jazz-Funk - 2014. Very fun album. It almost feels you're there watching the band play. ★★★★
64. Sufjan Stevens - The Age of Adz - Art Pop/Chamber Pop - 2010. I appreciate experimenting with your sound, but it doesn't always result in a good thing. I don't feel it does here. The electronic element to the album clashes with his style for me. ★★★
65. Oranssi Pazuzu - Farmakologinen - Black Metal/Psychedelic Rock - 2017. ★★★½
66. Godflesh - Godflesh - Sludge Metal/Industrial Metal - 1988. ★★★½
67. Kate Bush - Hounds of Love - Art Pop/Progressive Pop - 1985. ★★★½
68. Nico - Desertshore - Avant Folk/Chamber Folk - 1970. ★★★½
69. Old - The Musical Dimensions of Sleastak - Experimental Rock/Industrial Metal - 1993. There were times where I felt like I was listening to a sci fi horror movie. ★★★★½
70. Secret Chiefs 3 - Book of Souls: Folio A - Experimental Rock - 2013. ★★★½
71. Traditionalists - Le mani destre recise degli ultimi uomini - Film Score - 2009. ★★★
★★February Albums★★
72. Old - Lo Flux Tube - Industrial Metal/Experimental Rock - 1991. ★★★½
73. Secret Chiefs 3 - Book of Horizons - Experimental Rock - 2004. ★★★½
74. Beach Boys - Pet Sounds - Baroque Pop - 1966. Yep, first time I've listened to this. I've tried on numerous occasions but would quit after the 2nd or 3rd song because it's not as good as Wouldn't It Be Nice. But I did the whole thing this time. WIBN is still the best song, but it's a good album. ★★★½
75. Arcade Fire - Funeral - Indie Rock/Chamber Pop - 2004. ★★★
76. Sufjan Stevens - Seven Swans - Indie Folk/Chamber Folk - 2004. ★★★½
77. Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes - Indie Folk/Chamber Folk - 2008. ★★★½
78. Eyehategod - Take As Needed for Pain - Sludge Metal - 1993. ★★★
79. Aosoth - V: The Inside Scriptures - Black Metal - 2017. ★★★½
80. The Strokes - Is This It - Indie Rock/Garage Rock Revival - 2001. What I love about this challenge is that I'm listening to something all the way even if I'm not grabbed instantly. I tried listening to this before and wasn't grabbed so I turned it off after 2 songs. Completely different story this time. ★★★★
81. Bernard Herrmann - Psycho - Film Score/Modern Classical -1975. ★★★★
82. Joy Division - Closer - Post Punk - 1980. ★★★½
83. Bauhaus - In the Flat Field - Gothic Rock/Post Punk - 1980. ★★★½
84. Killing Joke - Killing Joke - Post Punk/Gothic Rock - 1980. ★★★
85. The Cure - Seventeen Seconds - Post Punk/Gothic Rock - 1980. ★★★
86. Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - Skeleton Tree - Singer Songwriter - 2016. ★★★
87. Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - The Firstborn is Dead - Post Punk/Punk Blues - 1985. ★★★½
88. Sigur Rós - ( ) - Post Rock/Ambient - 2002. Their music is very pretty, it's just slow. And at 70 minutes and change, it can get a bit boring. ★★★
89. Dragged Into Sunlight - Hatred of Mankind - Death Metal/Black Metal/Sludge Metal - 2009. ★★★½
90. JPEGMAFIA - Black Ben Carson - Industrial Hip Hop - 2016. He's was kind of obnoxious on this album, pretty much being like fuck everybody. But the music is still on point. Another release or two and he'll be a favorite of mine. ★★★★
91. JPEGMAFIA - The 2nd Amendment - Experimental Hip Hop - 2016. ★★★½
92. David Bowie - Station to Station - Art Rock - 1976. Way groovier than I expected. Bluesy riffs in there, some upbeat blues piano, a touch of drama. Excellent, balanced album. ★★★★½
93. Elvis Costello - This Year's Model - Pop Rock - 1978. ★★★½
94. David Bowie - "Heroes" - Art Rock - 1977. ★★★★
95. Miles Davis - Nefertiti - Post Bop/Modal Jazz - 1968. ★★★★
96. Carcass - Necroticism - Descanting the Insalubrious - Death Metal - 1991. ★★★
97. Fishmans - Long Season - Dream Pop/Neo Psychedelia - 1996. ★★★★
98. Paysage d'Hiver - Paysage d'Hiver - Atmospheric Black Metal - 1999. This could be a point higher if some of the fat was trimmed and the vocals were recorded a little better. ★★★½
99. Akercocke - Words That Go Unspoken, Deeds That Go Undone - Death Meta/Progressive Metal - 2005. ★★★½
100. Janelle Monáe - The Electric Lady - Contemporary R&B/Funk - 2013. ★★★½
101. Janelle Monáe - Metropolis, Suite I: The Chase - Art Pop/Contemporary R&B - 2007. ★★★½
102. Deathspell Omega - Diabolus Absconditus - Black Metal/Progressive Metal - 2011. ★★★
103. The 13th Floor Elevators - Easter Everywhere - Psychedelic Rock - 1967. The music was fine but it was ruined by this sound effect that played throughout their songs. Really started to grate on me. ★★
104. Ibeyi - Ash - Art Pop/Alternative R&B - 2017. ★★★
105. The Fall -This Nation's Saving Grace - Post Punk - 1985. ★★★
106. Car Seat Headrest - Teens of Denial - Indie Rock - 2016. ★★★½
107. Julia Holter - Have You in My Wilderness - Art Pop/Chamber Pop - 2015. ★★★
108. Blues Control - Local Flavor - Neo Psychedelia/Drone - 2009. ★★★½
★★March Albums★★
109. Nile - Annihilation of the Wicked - Death Metal - 2005. ★★★
110. Swans - Love of Life - Post Punk/Gothic Rock - 1992. Not sure why this doesn't get more love. Maybe because it's not quite as good as White Light. ★★★★
111. Current 93 - Lucifer Over London - Neofolk/Psychedelic Rock/Spoken Word - 1994. ★★★★
112. Current 93 - Horsey - Neofolk/Psychedeic Rock - 1997. ★★★½
113. Current 93 - Baalstorm, Sing Omega - Avant Folk/Spoken Word - 2010. This could have been in the 4.5-5 range if there were more vocal stylings than the spoken word style he does. I loved the instrumentation. I like his voice, and how fairytale it can be. Like I'm being read a book. But I'd like more beat to the music. ★★★★
114. Current 93 - Tamlin - Neofolk - 1994. ★★★½
115. Robin Trower - Bridge of Sighs - Blues Rock/Hard Rock - 1974. ★★★
116. Tom Waits - Alice - Singer-Songrwriter/Dark Cabaret - 2002. ★★★★
117. Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - No More Shall We Part - Singer Songwriter/Piano Rock - 2001. Nick oversang on a lot of tracks, bringing this down a little. I like his voice, but songs like "God Is In the House" for example, the singing just doesn't quite work for me. That's my only problem, though. ★★★½
118. My Bloody Valentine - Tremolo - Shoegaze/Dream Pop - 1991. ★★★
119. Iron Maiden - Piece of Mind - Heavy Metal - 1983. ★★★½
120. Johnny Cash - Johnny Cash With His Hot and Blue Guitar! - Country/Rockabilly - 1957. ★★★½
121. Swans - Holy Money - Industrial Rock/Noise Rock - 1986. I've been really slow to listen to this because nobody talks about it and places I visit like RYM have it scored pretty low. WHY?!?!. I feel like they wrote one of their most actually enjoyable albums while retaining that creepy and abrasive style they used to have. I mean Cop is dope, but this I'll actually want to listen to regularly. ★★★★½
122. With Passion - In the Midst of Bloodied Soil - Technical Death Metal/Metalcore - 2005. ★★½
123. Swans - My Father Will Guide Me Up a Rope to the Sky - Post Rock/Experimental Rock - 2010. This gets overlooked compared to the other post-reunion albums, but I feel like it's as good as any of them (except TBK). ★★★★
124. Diamanda Galás - Defixiones, Will and Testament - Piano Blues/Spoken Word - 2003. Incredible singer. From what I've read she's reading/singing journal entries by poets and war victims. Incredibly dark and unsettling. Hairs standing on your back and neck type of unsettling. My only criticism is, while the singer is the star, at times it features a little bit too much of her. ★★★★
125. Injury Reserve - Drive It Like It's Stolen - Experimental Hip Hop - 2017. ★★★½
126. Leviathan - Tentacles of Whorror - Depressive Black Metal - 2004. This dude is really good at creating such a bleak and hopeless atmosphere. Where my biggest problem comes is the songwriting sometimes sounds samey and I have a hard time placing where I'm at. He does a better job of this in later albums like Scar Sighted, but this is still cool. ★★★½
127. Radiohead - Amnesiac - Experimental Rock/Electronic - 2001. Not a Radiohead guy so my words aren't worth much, but this might be my favorite Radiohead album. I'm usually pretty bored aside from a song or two, but there were several cool and weird moments on this that had me very pleased. ★★★★
128. Swans - Body to Body Job to Job - Industrial/Noise Rock - 1991. ★★★★
129. Swans - Greed - Noise Rock/No Wave - 1986. ★★★½
130. Amy Winehouse - Back to Black - Soul/Rhythm and Blues - 2006. ★★★½
