If one of their albums appears in the top 1001 list, surely they are under appreciated and should not have been just a One-Hit-Wonder...
They got all the attention they deserved. The lead crying, whiny vocal is so annoying that it was really tough to make it through this thing. It's melodrama, not music.
So let's just remember Dexys for "Come on Eileen" as one of the best, sing-at-the-top-of-your-lungs party and dance songs.
Khaled apparently brought the Algerian desert blues music called Raï to the international stage. Sounds intriguing? Much of it is. Musical styles are borrowed from all over the world and blended with Raï. I expected this album to be tough to get through on my 1001 Album mission but even if I can't understand a word he's singing, the guy is good.
“The Cure... made an art form out of dark simplicity.”
I love the sparse, thin guitar strumming and melodies that predominate on this album. To me, they are not "dark" as much as they are "introspective".
The Cure is a brilliant band: They can make you think, and they can also make you put on your best British accent and sing "It's Friday I'm In Love" at the top of your voice.
“You’re telling me to be positive. How am I supposed to be positive when I don’t see shit positive?”
That line pretty much sums up this album from Eminem. He writes poetry that digs deep into his rough experiences and fantasies of drugs, alcohol, sexuality, violence, and poverty. Not pleasant to listen to, but intriguing. The question: Are the lyrics interesting because listening is like watching a traffic accident or because it challenges our impressions of society? I don't know the answer.
“[Portishead] wrote evocative pseudo-cabaret pop songs that subverted their conventional structures with experimental productions and rhythms of trip-hop. As a result, Portishead appealed to a broad audience — not just electronic dance and alternative rock fans, but thirtysomethings who found techno, trip-hop, and dance as exotic as world beat.”
Even though I'm just "discovering" them and almost out of my 40s, the quote above pretty much sums up my feelings. Very nice... one can either sit back and trip to their sound or listen intently to the poetic, hauntingly sung lyrics. Either way, it's enjoyable.
Courtney Love was angry and obviously was having a lot of trouble living through "this". Life is hard; being addicted doesn't make coping any easier. I'm not sure which came first, this album or Kurt Cobain's suicide, but the despair here is troubling and tough to listen to.
More easy listen', high quality chill providing a relaxing atmosphere to my day.
But this random order of the 1001 Albums list needs to turn uptempo soon or I'm gonna be asleep.