Top 100 Greatest Music Albums by 
babyBlueSedan 
My favorite albums, or "The 100 albums I'd keep if iTunes had a capacity of 100 albums."
The theme of this update, as with the past couple, is upheaval. Every time I update this I claim to be moving new favorite up higher while still stubbornly putting albums I used to love but never listen to anymore near the top. I won't know for sure if I've been more successful this time around until I update this again. But I hope that this current iteration shook things up a bit and added a bit more variety, even if that variety is in the form of albums most people have heard of. I've tried to include as many artists and genres where possible, partially because I want to appear more interesting than I actually am, but in the end this is still very rock and pop oriented. In particular, this iteration makes obvious my current love of plaintive folk/singer-songwriter stuff.
I've also relaxed my artist limits just a bit to highlight the artists I really love, but I still couldn't include everything I wanted because spots are so limited. In some cases I decided what to include based on what I wanted to write about. I recommend checking out my decade charts for more deep cuts.
Also, I appreciate all the kind and generous comments - they're my main motivation for updating this every couple years or so.
- Chart updated: 05/30/2020 02:15
- (Created: 07/31/2013 04:33).
- Chart size: 100 albums.
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Like walking through a world fair where nearly everyone is British
"Hearing that noise was my first ever feeling" could aptly describe hearing this album for the first time, but instead it's a lyric that gets lost in the shuffle in "Lost In The Supermarket." This album can be challenging at first listen, but only because it's billed as a punk album. When I first listened to it, I was ready to have my ass kicked by the punkiest punk I'd ever heard (having read reviews it was implied that Rise Against and the Offspring were nothing compared to this). The first two tracks blew me away, but what was this "Jimmy Jazz" shit? Keep yelling! Then we get some weird world music sounding songs and, eventually, a song about being disillusioned with the supermarket. After that, I was out.
Clearly I've grown musically since then, and this has become a favorite. Why? Because this isn't a punk album, but rather one of the most genre-diverse albums I've heard. Most of it is built around punk song structure and Joe Strummer's bratty British vocals, but all of the styles combine perfectly into something entirely new. It's perhaps a little too long for it's own good, but I'd rather have it try some things and fail* than be shorter and less interesting. I don't even know what to call some of these since I'm really ignorant of non-American music genres, but I think there's some samba and reggae on here. "Lover's Rock" and "Revolution Rock" are some great low key songs, but punk tracks like "Clampdown" and the title track keep the energy going. It's got tons of personality too, like the random usage of Spanish words on Spanish bombs ("please don't leave the ventana open") and a great use of horns. And as for "Lost In The Supermarket," that's actually one of the best songs here. It's barely even about supermarket; it's really about not being "born, so much as I fell out" and "the people that live on the ceiling". So really I have no idea what it's about.
Best song? "Train In Vain" for sure. No doubt in my mind.
*Everyone seems to have different least favorite tracks on this album, so here are the ones that are mostly forgettable to me: "The Right Profile," "Koka Kola," and "Four Horsemen." [First added to this chart: 08/04/2013]
"Hearing that noise was my first ever feeling" could aptly describe hearing this album for the first time, but instead it's a lyric that gets lost in the shuffle in "Lost In The Supermarket." This album can be challenging at first listen, but only because it's billed as a punk album. When I first listened to it, I was ready to have my ass kicked by the punkiest punk I'd ever heard (having read reviews it was implied that Rise Against and the Offspring were nothing compared to this). The first two tracks blew me away, but what was this "Jimmy Jazz" shit? Keep yelling! Then we get some weird world music sounding songs and, eventually, a song about being disillusioned with the supermarket. After that, I was out.
Clearly I've grown musically since then, and this has become a favorite. Why? Because this isn't a punk album, but rather one of the most genre-diverse albums I've heard. Most of it is built around punk song structure and Joe Strummer's bratty British vocals, but all of the styles combine perfectly into something entirely new. It's perhaps a little too long for it's own good, but I'd rather have it try some things and fail* than be shorter and less interesting. I don't even know what to call some of these since I'm really ignorant of non-American music genres, but I think there's some samba and reggae on here. "Lover's Rock" and "Revolution Rock" are some great low key songs, but punk tracks like "Clampdown" and the title track keep the energy going. It's got tons of personality too, like the random usage of Spanish words on Spanish bombs ("please don't leave the ventana open") and a great use of horns. And as for "Lost In The Supermarket," that's actually one of the best songs here. It's barely even about supermarket; it's really about not being "born, so much as I fell out" and "the people that live on the ceiling". So really I have no idea what it's about.
Best song? "Train In Vain" for sure. No doubt in my mind.
*Everyone seems to have different least favorite tracks on this album, so here are the ones that are mostly forgettable to me: "The Right Profile," "Koka Kola," and "Four Horsemen." [First added to this chart: 08/04/2013]
Year of Release:
1979
Appears in:
Rank Score:
36,238
Rank in 1979:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
256
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Like walking through a library where everyone is wearing sweater vests
Twee pop, and by a very general extension, indie pop, have never really appealed to me. I enjoy the lyrical themes and the sentiment but the lack of interesting instrumentation usually makes it hard for me to stay interested. And the song structures are typically pretty repetitive. But every once in a while a band comes along with lyrics so good they could be backed by nothing but hiccups and kazoos and I'd probably still listen to it. This album is proof.
Musically this is nothing special. It's built around acoustic guitars with some other instruments occasionally thrown in. The songs are verse/chorus/verse songs. Which is fine, because the lyrics are superb and the band knows exactly when to break from the acoustic/subdued atmosphere.
If You're Feeling Sinister is a collection of tales of sorrow that are dealt with by facing them head on and pretending they don't exist. The narrator of Seeing Other People has that gut feeling that he is no longer in a relationship, but has his fingers in his ears and is refusing to believe it. Me and the Major is a story about millennials told a decade before millennials were a thing (it also features an insane harmonica solo, one of the few moments on the album when the music really lets loose). Get Me Away From Here I'm Dying is a classic depressing-song-that-sounds-cheery; ever one liner is sobering and every sarcastic quip is perfectly executed. The title track starts as a quasi-space-folk song with one character who enjoys S&M and Bible study and another who's a vicar or whatever and then breaks into an almost anthemic chorus. And of course it ends with Judy and the Dream of Horses, the only source of hope offered by an awesomely haunting album. But not even Judy is happy when she's awake, and this album reminds us that everyone should take advantage of the times when life is good. [First added to this chart: 08/04/2013]
Twee pop, and by a very general extension, indie pop, have never really appealed to me. I enjoy the lyrical themes and the sentiment but the lack of interesting instrumentation usually makes it hard for me to stay interested. And the song structures are typically pretty repetitive. But every once in a while a band comes along with lyrics so good they could be backed by nothing but hiccups and kazoos and I'd probably still listen to it. This album is proof.
Musically this is nothing special. It's built around acoustic guitars with some other instruments occasionally thrown in. The songs are verse/chorus/verse songs. Which is fine, because the lyrics are superb and the band knows exactly when to break from the acoustic/subdued atmosphere.
If You're Feeling Sinister is a collection of tales of sorrow that are dealt with by facing them head on and pretending they don't exist. The narrator of Seeing Other People has that gut feeling that he is no longer in a relationship, but has his fingers in his ears and is refusing to believe it. Me and the Major is a story about millennials told a decade before millennials were a thing (it also features an insane harmonica solo, one of the few moments on the album when the music really lets loose). Get Me Away From Here I'm Dying is a classic depressing-song-that-sounds-cheery; ever one liner is sobering and every sarcastic quip is perfectly executed. The title track starts as a quasi-space-folk song with one character who enjoys S&M and Bible study and another who's a vicar or whatever and then breaks into an almost anthemic chorus. And of course it ends with Judy and the Dream of Horses, the only source of hope offered by an awesomely haunting album. But not even Judy is happy when she's awake, and this album reminds us that everyone should take advantage of the times when life is good. [First added to this chart: 08/04/2013]
Year of Release:
1996
Appears in:
Rank Score:
11,988
Rank in 1996:
Rank in 1990s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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Like walking through a park on a sunny day, watching the colors start to blend as you're not sure if you're dreaming or not
Yeah yeah yeah, the Beatles are back on my chart. I removed Revolver during my last update, for a couple reasons. First, I figured this album didn't need my help to get any more attention. I'd rather promote some album with five ratings than a top 10 album of all time. Second, I was kind of sick of the Beatles at that point. After getting a bit obsessed with their history and the stories behind all of their songs back in college I had, with a few exceptions, fallen out of love with a lot of their best songs. But recently I listened to this one again and I had to put it back on because this is one of the best pop albums of all time.
I don't really like reviews where someone takes a criticism of an album from someone else and lists the reasons they disagree with it, but if you'll indulge me for a minute, I'm going to do just that. One of the biggest critics of the Beatles is our old friend Scaruffi; his essay on why the band is overrated has basically become a meme at this point. I haven't read the whole thing, because why would I waste what precious time I have on this earth doing that, but I have skimmed parts of it. My biggest takeaway from it is that Scaruffi likes adventurous songs that do things that no one has done before, and he is disappointed with the Beatles for writing primarily short pop songs. But too often, I think Scaruffi's idea of "adventurous" or "new" just means "long." Why else would he praise The Doors' "Light My Fire," which is an overlong, meandering organ solo in the middle of a pretty by-the-numbers pop song? Yes, the Beatles wrote short songs. And they wrote pop songs. But I would argue that it's harder to write a short, perfect pop song than the kind of free-improvisational mess that appears on a Red Crayola album. It's at this point that I acknowledge that Scaruffi and I want different things out of music, so I'll leave my problems with his take at that. But on that note: pretty much all of these songs are perfect pop songs, which is incredible.
Another thing critics of the band often mention is that though they're famous for experimenting with drugs and writing songs like "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds," the band's music is much more pop than it is psychedelia. But again, I'd argue that their incorporation of psychedelia into pop music is just as impressive as longer, chaotic purely psychedelic songs. The trippy guitar on "I'm Only Sleeping" is fairly disorienting, even the middle of an otherwise fairly straightfoward Beatles tune. The lyrics of "She Said She Said" are appropriately claustrophobic, and of course the closer, "Tomorrow Never Knows," is the most creative of the bunch and one of the best songs on the album. If nothing else, even if the Beatles didn't invent psychedelic music (they didn't) they can perhaps be credited as bringing it to the masses in a tighter, but not really watered down, way. That's not a reason to praise this album per se, but credit where credit's due. Even the more traditional songs here are great though. "Eleanor Rigby" is one of the bands best and finds them performing a song where none of the band members actually touch an instrument. "Got to Get You Into My Life" is an ode to marijuana with a great horn part. And lastly, there's the band's best song of all: "For No One." The starkness of the song, combined with that beautiful French horn and dark (but admittedly a little melodramatic lyrics) makes this tower over the rest of the bunch. I could probably write a bizarre, 20 minute long free rock freakout that sounds like nothing anyone has ever done before without much training or thought, and it would be terrible. It would take me years to write a song as complete as "For No One."
Of course, this album does have one of the worst Beatles songs of all on it, one that many say tarnishes the rest of the album. To which I say: yes, "Doctor Robert" is bad, but it's not bad enough to ruin 13 other excellent tracks. [First added to this chart: 08/04/2013]
Yeah yeah yeah, the Beatles are back on my chart. I removed Revolver during my last update, for a couple reasons. First, I figured this album didn't need my help to get any more attention. I'd rather promote some album with five ratings than a top 10 album of all time. Second, I was kind of sick of the Beatles at that point. After getting a bit obsessed with their history and the stories behind all of their songs back in college I had, with a few exceptions, fallen out of love with a lot of their best songs. But recently I listened to this one again and I had to put it back on because this is one of the best pop albums of all time.
I don't really like reviews where someone takes a criticism of an album from someone else and lists the reasons they disagree with it, but if you'll indulge me for a minute, I'm going to do just that. One of the biggest critics of the Beatles is our old friend Scaruffi; his essay on why the band is overrated has basically become a meme at this point. I haven't read the whole thing, because why would I waste what precious time I have on this earth doing that, but I have skimmed parts of it. My biggest takeaway from it is that Scaruffi likes adventurous songs that do things that no one has done before, and he is disappointed with the Beatles for writing primarily short pop songs. But too often, I think Scaruffi's idea of "adventurous" or "new" just means "long." Why else would he praise The Doors' "Light My Fire," which is an overlong, meandering organ solo in the middle of a pretty by-the-numbers pop song? Yes, the Beatles wrote short songs. And they wrote pop songs. But I would argue that it's harder to write a short, perfect pop song than the kind of free-improvisational mess that appears on a Red Crayola album. It's at this point that I acknowledge that Scaruffi and I want different things out of music, so I'll leave my problems with his take at that. But on that note: pretty much all of these songs are perfect pop songs, which is incredible.
Another thing critics of the band often mention is that though they're famous for experimenting with drugs and writing songs like "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds," the band's music is much more pop than it is psychedelia. But again, I'd argue that their incorporation of psychedelia into pop music is just as impressive as longer, chaotic purely psychedelic songs. The trippy guitar on "I'm Only Sleeping" is fairly disorienting, even the middle of an otherwise fairly straightfoward Beatles tune. The lyrics of "She Said She Said" are appropriately claustrophobic, and of course the closer, "Tomorrow Never Knows," is the most creative of the bunch and one of the best songs on the album. If nothing else, even if the Beatles didn't invent psychedelic music (they didn't) they can perhaps be credited as bringing it to the masses in a tighter, but not really watered down, way. That's not a reason to praise this album per se, but credit where credit's due. Even the more traditional songs here are great though. "Eleanor Rigby" is one of the bands best and finds them performing a song where none of the band members actually touch an instrument. "Got to Get You Into My Life" is an ode to marijuana with a great horn part. And lastly, there's the band's best song of all: "For No One." The starkness of the song, combined with that beautiful French horn and dark (but admittedly a little melodramatic lyrics) makes this tower over the rest of the bunch. I could probably write a bizarre, 20 minute long free rock freakout that sounds like nothing anyone has ever done before without much training or thought, and it would be terrible. It would take me years to write a song as complete as "For No One."
Of course, this album does have one of the worst Beatles songs of all on it, one that many say tarnishes the rest of the album. To which I say: yes, "Doctor Robert" is bad, but it's not bad enough to ruin 13 other excellent tracks. [First added to this chart: 08/04/2013]
Year of Release:
1966
Appears in:
Rank Score:
56,944
Rank in 1966:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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Like walking into a funeral parlor and sitting down inside a coffin to make an ironic statement on how the working world is slowing killing us all, but somehow coming off as charming instead of pretentious
Morrissey has proven himself to be full of awful opinions, but there's one thing (and probably only the one thing) that he's absolutely right about: this is the best Smiths album. It took me quite a while to come around to that opinion, as a lot of their best songs are on their other albums. And I'm usually one to prefer albums with high highs instead of a lack of filler. But sometimes when you're listening to "Vicar in a Tutu," or "Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others," or the entire second half of side A of their debut you crave an album with wall-to-wall greatness. And as far as Smiths albums go, Strangeways comes the closest.
Not only is this album more consistent, but it's also got a lot more variety than their other albums. You've got the band's most danceable song in "Stop Me If You've Heard This One Before," followed by the nearly two minute orchestral intro to "Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me." You've got short little ditties like "Girlfriend in a Coma" and "Unhappy Birthday" as well as the (somewhat) epic "Paint a Vulgar Picture." The jangle pop influences are dialed back in a lot of cases, and in some cases (like "Last Night" and "Death of a Disco Dancer") gone entirely. You've got the marimba on the opener and the strings during the chorus of "Girlfriend in a Coma." In a lot of ways it feels fuller and more complete than their other albums.
And if you only come to the Smiths for Morrissey's sardonic lyrics, you won't be disappointed either. More than ever before he sounds bored here, not so much sad or full of longing but just tired of what life has to offer. A lot of this is because of the way he delivers his vocals in a way that feels disconnected from the subject matter. "Girlfriend in a Coma" is the most obvious example of this, with Morrissey jumping between concern and indifference for his comatose lover in a way that makes it seem like he only cares because it's what people expect him to do. On "Stop Me" he delivers a classic Morrissey line of "Nothing's changed, I still love you oh I still love you / Only slightly, only slightly less than I used to" during an upbeat verse that does its best to distract you from Morrissey basically just giving a bunch of excuses for being an asshole. But just as it's the centerpiece musically, "Paint a Vulgar Picture" is the standout lyrically. If you ignore the fact that the band later went on to do everything they're criticizing here, it's a pretty cutting takedown of the music industry trying to make a buck in any way possible. And again, the indifferent tone really makes it sting all the more, like when Morrissey sings "but you could have said no if you wanted to / you could have walked away...couldn't you?" in a way that makes it sound as if he's singing straight at you. Or when he winks at the audience by enunciating "you just haven't earned it yet baby" (which was the name of one of their other songs, you see). But then at the end he reveals he's singing from the perspective of the dead star's lover, and...well let's just say I have a lot of conflicted feelings on this song, but when I'm feeling misanthropic there's nothing I enjoy singing along to more than this. [First added to this chart: 05/29/2020]
Morrissey has proven himself to be full of awful opinions, but there's one thing (and probably only the one thing) that he's absolutely right about: this is the best Smiths album. It took me quite a while to come around to that opinion, as a lot of their best songs are on their other albums. And I'm usually one to prefer albums with high highs instead of a lack of filler. But sometimes when you're listening to "Vicar in a Tutu," or "Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others," or the entire second half of side A of their debut you crave an album with wall-to-wall greatness. And as far as Smiths albums go, Strangeways comes the closest.
Not only is this album more consistent, but it's also got a lot more variety than their other albums. You've got the band's most danceable song in "Stop Me If You've Heard This One Before," followed by the nearly two minute orchestral intro to "Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me." You've got short little ditties like "Girlfriend in a Coma" and "Unhappy Birthday" as well as the (somewhat) epic "Paint a Vulgar Picture." The jangle pop influences are dialed back in a lot of cases, and in some cases (like "Last Night" and "Death of a Disco Dancer") gone entirely. You've got the marimba on the opener and the strings during the chorus of "Girlfriend in a Coma." In a lot of ways it feels fuller and more complete than their other albums.
And if you only come to the Smiths for Morrissey's sardonic lyrics, you won't be disappointed either. More than ever before he sounds bored here, not so much sad or full of longing but just tired of what life has to offer. A lot of this is because of the way he delivers his vocals in a way that feels disconnected from the subject matter. "Girlfriend in a Coma" is the most obvious example of this, with Morrissey jumping between concern and indifference for his comatose lover in a way that makes it seem like he only cares because it's what people expect him to do. On "Stop Me" he delivers a classic Morrissey line of "Nothing's changed, I still love you oh I still love you / Only slightly, only slightly less than I used to" during an upbeat verse that does its best to distract you from Morrissey basically just giving a bunch of excuses for being an asshole. But just as it's the centerpiece musically, "Paint a Vulgar Picture" is the standout lyrically. If you ignore the fact that the band later went on to do everything they're criticizing here, it's a pretty cutting takedown of the music industry trying to make a buck in any way possible. And again, the indifferent tone really makes it sting all the more, like when Morrissey sings "but you could have said no if you wanted to / you could have walked away...couldn't you?" in a way that makes it sound as if he's singing straight at you. Or when he winks at the audience by enunciating "you just haven't earned it yet baby" (which was the name of one of their other songs, you see). But then at the end he reveals he's singing from the perspective of the dead star's lover, and...well let's just say I have a lot of conflicted feelings on this song, but when I'm feeling misanthropic there's nothing I enjoy singing along to more than this. [First added to this chart: 05/29/2020]
Year of Release:
1987
Appears in:
Rank Score:
6,374
Rank in 1987:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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Like walking through your workplace's office after making a great presentation to your boss
Usually when I write these descriptions, it's not because I sat down with the intention to do so. I don't crack open my laptop, scroll down the list, and say "yep, that's the one for tonight." It's a lot more spontaneous than that. They typically start with a basic idea, which most often comes when I'm listening to the album I'm writing about. I'll notice something that I haven't before, or make some new connection, and that gives me something to go off. Then I'll either jot that down on my phone (less likely), or (more likely) try my best to remember it until I'm home and have a chance to put words to computer. It can be a slow process, because I usually don't think of something to write about unless I'm listening to an album or a song from it. And hey, there are only so many hours in the day, and new music to explore as well as old.
So when I added Technique during this update, I hoped that an idea would come to me. I listened to the album a couple times. Nothing. And I realized, not for the first time, that this isn't the type of music to sit down and analyze. Stephen Hyden once wrote something about listening to a Calvin Harris album in his den by himself and realizing that he was approaching it entirely incorrectly. It wasn't going to hit him in the dark at his desk. It was going to him in the places where that music was written for. New Order and Calvin Harris have a lot of differences, but I think the concept can generally be applied here as well. Dance music isn't made for intense listening, for poring over for meaning. It's made to hit you immediately. So maybe I'm wasting time trying to come up with a way to dig into this.
And yet...this has consistently been my favorite dance or dance-adjacent album for quite some time. It towers over New Order's other work for me. It makes me forgive the trite and inconsequential lyrics despite lyrics being one of the things that really sells music to me. And if I really had to guess: it's because it does hit me immediately. But it hits me much more immediately than any other immediate music. The biggest reason is that there's so much going on here, and the opening track is a great example of this. It starts with a lot of build-up, as each instrument comes in one by one. The drums sound great. By the time the vocals come in, there's so much going on that it's almost disorienting for a dance track. The vocals start panning from one channel to another, Bernard Sumner starts panting, the other instruments drop out for a sharp repetitive guitar, a robot start singing over some beautiful keys, a sheep starts bleating! It feels beautifully robotic.
But the best part about this album is the pacing and momentum. With the exception of the last track, every song is better than the last one. Instead of losing interest over the singles packed at the start of the album, you're on the edge of your seat with how the band will keep outdoing themselves until "Vanishing Point" ends. Dance and pop are great genres, but they're not album genres. This is one dance album that really holds up. [First added to this chart: 11/17/2015]
Usually when I write these descriptions, it's not because I sat down with the intention to do so. I don't crack open my laptop, scroll down the list, and say "yep, that's the one for tonight." It's a lot more spontaneous than that. They typically start with a basic idea, which most often comes when I'm listening to the album I'm writing about. I'll notice something that I haven't before, or make some new connection, and that gives me something to go off. Then I'll either jot that down on my phone (less likely), or (more likely) try my best to remember it until I'm home and have a chance to put words to computer. It can be a slow process, because I usually don't think of something to write about unless I'm listening to an album or a song from it. And hey, there are only so many hours in the day, and new music to explore as well as old.
So when I added Technique during this update, I hoped that an idea would come to me. I listened to the album a couple times. Nothing. And I realized, not for the first time, that this isn't the type of music to sit down and analyze. Stephen Hyden once wrote something about listening to a Calvin Harris album in his den by himself and realizing that he was approaching it entirely incorrectly. It wasn't going to hit him in the dark at his desk. It was going to him in the places where that music was written for. New Order and Calvin Harris have a lot of differences, but I think the concept can generally be applied here as well. Dance music isn't made for intense listening, for poring over for meaning. It's made to hit you immediately. So maybe I'm wasting time trying to come up with a way to dig into this.
And yet...this has consistently been my favorite dance or dance-adjacent album for quite some time. It towers over New Order's other work for me. It makes me forgive the trite and inconsequential lyrics despite lyrics being one of the things that really sells music to me. And if I really had to guess: it's because it does hit me immediately. But it hits me much more immediately than any other immediate music. The biggest reason is that there's so much going on here, and the opening track is a great example of this. It starts with a lot of build-up, as each instrument comes in one by one. The drums sound great. By the time the vocals come in, there's so much going on that it's almost disorienting for a dance track. The vocals start panning from one channel to another, Bernard Sumner starts panting, the other instruments drop out for a sharp repetitive guitar, a robot start singing over some beautiful keys, a sheep starts bleating! It feels beautifully robotic.
But the best part about this album is the pacing and momentum. With the exception of the last track, every song is better than the last one. Instead of losing interest over the singles packed at the start of the album, you're on the edge of your seat with how the band will keep outdoing themselves until "Vanishing Point" ends. Dance and pop are great genres, but they're not album genres. This is one dance album that really holds up. [First added to this chart: 11/17/2015]
Year of Release:
1989
Appears in:
Rank Score:
2,289
Rank in 1989:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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Like walking through a club on Venus where they only play industrial music, but everyone dances to it anyway
I think this might be the best album cover I've seen. Every good album cover has to meet three criteria. First, and most obvious, it has to look nice. This one is so crisp, with the way the light catches the apple and the fingernail polish. Second, it has to make you want to listen to the album without knowing anything else about it. You can have a really pretty picture for your album cover but if it looks generic or uninspiring it's not going to convince me to give the album a spin. This one hits this mark because it's just so out there - what kind of music could a record with this cover possibly hold? Third, and most importantly, the cover has to represent the music that's on the album. When I put an album on I want the cover to match the emotions the music is going to bring out (though there's an argument here that going completely the other direction and making your cover stand in sharp contrast to the music is also effective - think 20 Jazz Funk Greats). This one also hits the mark, because the blood dripping down from the apple matches the sinister nature of this sound. But, and folks who don't like this cover might have already been thinking this, this cover is also super tacky. It's so goofy, from the way the artist's name is on the label to, again, just the general concept. It looks silly while trying to look dark. And in a lot of ways, that's also true of the music.
With this album Blanck Mass has hit "can do no wrong status" for me, as he delivered his third excellent album in a row. This one is my favorite, despite him not changing his sound all that much. It's still the same swirling electro-industrial songs that feel like dance tracks but hit like metal songs. But it also goes in a bit of a new direction by intentionally becoming a bit cheesy, with some pretty synths and keys that make it sound like a dance party for the end of the world. If this album was a movie, it would be Mad Max: Fury Road - ostensibly a violent affair, with a lot of action, but it's all stylized, more about the color and coordination than actually trying to inflict harm. There's no metal on this album, but a lot of it reminds me stylistically of atmospheric black metal, with repeated parts that drive home sometimes unpleasant sounds and harsh shouted vocal effects. But when I listen to this, I don't feel like headbanging. I feel like dancing, whether it be to the climax of "Death Drop" or the building swell and eventual eruption of "House vs House." The latter is one of my favorite electronic tracks; it's incredibly dynamic and its 8 minute run-time goes by in the blink of an eye.
I'm not sure this is the most adventurous Blanck Mass could have been with this release, and I'm not sure it's even the best entry point to the rest of his discography. But moreso than either of the albums before it, it feels like a full package, like an entire experience that was packaged together to fit the theme. Consider again the cover, or these songs titles that are so dark they're nearly trying to hard: "Death Drop," Love is a Parasite," "Wings of Hate." This makes me wonder if I judge non-music related things like album covers and song titles in addition to the music, and in that regard I think the honest answer is that I do a bit. Just a bit! These things need great and appropriate music to work, and that's certainly the case here.
I think this might be the best album cover I've seen. Every good album cover has to meet three criteria. First, and most obvious, it has to look nice. This one is so crisp, with the way the light catches the apple and the fingernail polish. Second, it has to make you want to listen to the album without knowing anything else about it. You can have a really pretty picture for your album cover but if it looks generic or uninspiring it's not going to convince me to give the album a spin. This one hits this mark because it's just so out there - what kind of music could a record with this cover possibly hold? Third, and most importantly, the cover has to represent the music that's on the album. When I put an album on I want the cover to match the emotions the music is going to bring out (though there's an argument here that going completely the other direction and making your cover stand in sharp contrast to the music is also effective - think 20 Jazz Funk Greats). This one also hits the mark, because the blood dripping down from the apple matches the sinister nature of this sound. But, and folks who don't like this cover might have already been thinking this, this cover is also super tacky. It's so goofy, from the way the artist's name is on the label to, again, just the general concept. It looks silly while trying to look dark. And in a lot of ways, that's also true of the music.
With this album Blanck Mass has hit "can do no wrong status" for me, as he delivered his third excellent album in a row. This one is my favorite, despite him not changing his sound all that much. It's still the same swirling electro-industrial songs that feel like dance tracks but hit like metal songs. But it also goes in a bit of a new direction by intentionally becoming a bit cheesy, with some pretty synths and keys that make it sound like a dance party for the end of the world. If this album was a movie, it would be Mad Max: Fury Road - ostensibly a violent affair, with a lot of action, but it's all stylized, more about the color and coordination than actually trying to inflict harm. There's no metal on this album, but a lot of it reminds me stylistically of atmospheric black metal, with repeated parts that drive home sometimes unpleasant sounds and harsh shouted vocal effects. But when I listen to this, I don't feel like headbanging. I feel like dancing, whether it be to the climax of "Death Drop" or the building swell and eventual eruption of "House vs House." The latter is one of my favorite electronic tracks; it's incredibly dynamic and its 8 minute run-time goes by in the blink of an eye.
I'm not sure this is the most adventurous Blanck Mass could have been with this release, and I'm not sure it's even the best entry point to the rest of his discography. But moreso than either of the albums before it, it feels like a full package, like an entire experience that was packaged together to fit the theme. Consider again the cover, or these songs titles that are so dark they're nearly trying to hard: "Death Drop," Love is a Parasite," "Wings of Hate." This makes me wonder if I judge non-music related things like album covers and song titles in addition to the music, and in that regard I think the honest answer is that I do a bit. Just a bit! These things need great and appropriate music to work, and that's certainly the case here.
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Like walking into a high school history class where the stoner kid who sits in the back is ranting about how communism is a good idea in theory
I don't come from a musical background, despite three-ish years of piano lessons, so when I write about music I find it difficult to talk about fancy music terms. I can't identify what key a song is in, and half the time I'm not sure if I'm using words like "dissonance" and "chord" correctly. Most of the time I just talk about lyrics and atmosphere and hope no one catches on. But luckily music writers have invented ways to described music that don't require a musical background. Like, did you know there's a genre called Zolo that RYM describes as being characterized by "polka dot drums"? Crazy. Another one of my favorites is "angular guitars." I have no idea how to technically describe that phenomenon, but I can definitely identify a guitar that jerks back and forth between notes and call it "angular."
And on that note, this might be the most "angular" album of all time. Gang of Four gets lumped in with the other post punk bands of its era, like Joy Division, quite a lot. But musically, this album has almost nothing in common with the gloomy echoing rock of the rest of that genre. This is basically dance music made for a dance before the world ends. Damaged Goods, the best song here, makes me want to get up and move every time. But if it came out when I was on the dance floor I'm not sure whether I would know how. And I'd also probably tire myself out in about 30 seconds (because the song is fast, I am in decent shape). And best of all, there's no "minimal atmospheric song with the sound of breaking glass" on this album like there is on a lot of post punk albums. It's all killer no filler.
Lyrically this album is incredibly political, and it's got some lyrics that are good for singing along to. Even if the politics are a little...overbearing? The first verse of I Found That Essence Rare has great flow and rhymes:
"Aim for the body rare, you'll find it on the TV
The worst thing in 1954 was the bikini
See the girl on the TV dressed in a bikini
She doesn't think so but she's dressed for the H-bomb"
But the way it switches to being about the H-bomb could give one whiplash (bikini is the bikini atoll, get it?). Part of my likes this though, as the twist feels just as herky jerky as the music, so it fits well. [First added to this chart: 03/01/2014]
I don't come from a musical background, despite three-ish years of piano lessons, so when I write about music I find it difficult to talk about fancy music terms. I can't identify what key a song is in, and half the time I'm not sure if I'm using words like "dissonance" and "chord" correctly. Most of the time I just talk about lyrics and atmosphere and hope no one catches on. But luckily music writers have invented ways to described music that don't require a musical background. Like, did you know there's a genre called Zolo that RYM describes as being characterized by "polka dot drums"? Crazy. Another one of my favorites is "angular guitars." I have no idea how to technically describe that phenomenon, but I can definitely identify a guitar that jerks back and forth between notes and call it "angular."
And on that note, this might be the most "angular" album of all time. Gang of Four gets lumped in with the other post punk bands of its era, like Joy Division, quite a lot. But musically, this album has almost nothing in common with the gloomy echoing rock of the rest of that genre. This is basically dance music made for a dance before the world ends. Damaged Goods, the best song here, makes me want to get up and move every time. But if it came out when I was on the dance floor I'm not sure whether I would know how. And I'd also probably tire myself out in about 30 seconds (because the song is fast, I am in decent shape). And best of all, there's no "minimal atmospheric song with the sound of breaking glass" on this album like there is on a lot of post punk albums. It's all killer no filler.
Lyrically this album is incredibly political, and it's got some lyrics that are good for singing along to. Even if the politics are a little...overbearing? The first verse of I Found That Essence Rare has great flow and rhymes:
"Aim for the body rare, you'll find it on the TV
The worst thing in 1954 was the bikini
See the girl on the TV dressed in a bikini
She doesn't think so but she's dressed for the H-bomb"
But the way it switches to being about the H-bomb could give one whiplash (bikini is the bikini atoll, get it?). Part of my likes this though, as the twist feels just as herky jerky as the music, so it fits well. [First added to this chart: 03/01/2014]
Year of Release:
1979
Appears in:
Rank Score:
5,094
Rank in 1979:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Total albums: 7. Page 1 of 1
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Top 100 Greatest Music Albums composition
| Decade | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
 |
|
|
| 1930s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1940s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1950s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1960s | 4 | 4% | |
| 1970s | 9 | 9% | |
| 1980s | 8 | 8% | |
| 1990s | 23 | 23% | |
| 2000s | 28 | 28% | |
| 2010s | 28 | 28% | |
| 2020s | 0 | 0% |
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
 |
|
|
| Modest Mouse | 3 | 3% | |
| Kanye West | 2 | 2% | |
| Songs: Ohia | 2 | 2% | |
| Sufjan Stevens | 2 | 2% | |
| Kendrick Lamar | 2 | 2% | |
| American Football | 1 | 1% | |
| Aesop Rock | 1 | 1% | |
| Show all | |||
Top 100 Greatest Music Albums chart changes
| Biggest climbers |
|---|
| Up 44 from 79th to 35th E•MO•TION by Carly Rae Jepsen |
| Up 35 from 45th to 10th Songs About Leaving by Carissa's Wierd |
| Up 29 from 76th to 47th The Glow Pt. 2 by The Microphones |
| Biggest fallers |
|---|
| Down 32 from 57th to 89th Dig Me Out by Sleater-Kinney |
| Down 29 from 26th to 55th The Suburbs by Arcade Fire |
| Down 29 from 52nd to 81st Crack The Skye by Mastodon |
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Top 100 Greatest Music Albums ratings
94/100 (from 149 votes)
where:
av = trimmed mean average rating an item has currently received.
n = number of ratings an item has currently received.
m = minimum number of ratings required for an item to appear in a 'top-rated' chart (currently 10).
AV = the site mean average rating.
Showing latest 5 ratings for this chart. | Show all 149 ratings for this chart.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Chart ratings | Avg. chart rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
90/100  | 01/16/2023 22:04 | Johnnyo | | 80/100 |
90/100 | 05/21/2022 09:11 |  Timestarter | | 90/100 |
 100/100 | 09/11/2021 15:03 |  AvalancheGrips | | 89/100 |
95/100 | 08/31/2021 21:02 | leniad | | 85/100 |
100/100 | 04/28/2021 09:45 |  DriftingOrpheus | | 91/100 |
Rating metrics:
Outliers can be removed when calculating a mean average to dampen the effects of ratings outside the normal distribution. This figure is provided as the trimmed mean. A high standard deviation can be legitimate, but can sometimes indicate 'gaming' is occurring. Consider a simplified example* of an item receiving ratings of 100, 50, & 0. The mean average rating would be 50. However, ratings of 55, 50 & 45 could also result in the same average. The second average might be more trusted because there is more consensus around a particular rating (a lower deviation).
(*In practice, some charts can have several thousand ratings)
This chart is rated in the top 1% of all charts on BestEverAlbums.com. This chart has a Bayesian average rating of 93.6/100, a mean average of 93.5/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 94.1/100. The standard deviation for this chart is 7.6.
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Top 100 Greatest Music Albums favourites
Showing latest 20 members who have added this chart as a favourite | Show all 43 members
Top 100 Greatest Music Albums comments
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90/100
From Johnnyo 01/16/2023 22:05
Great chart and the work that has gone into each entry. Wow! Brilliant stuff
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
95/100
From leniad 08/31/2021 21:02
good writing and good taste
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From weyesgroove 09/29/2020 16:32
cool chart man. love the descriptions.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
100/100
From 
Keatownrodriguez 10/28/2019 21:19
Keatownrodriguez 10/28/2019 21:19
Any chart with this much time put into it is so cool to me
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
95/100
From pctrooper 10/04/2019 19:23
These notes are so detailed and helpful for advocating your choices. You must really know how to listen to music and listen to it hard. Great albums, too.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
100/100
From eharrell 07/24/2019 00:02
Best Chart ever
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
100/100
From tk421ucopy 07/23/2019 19:24
incredible. you have a different taste in music, but wow these descriptions are prime
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
100/100
From 
DommeDamian 07/23/2019 12:00
DommeDamian 07/23/2019 12:00
Is there a limit of how much inspiration, this chart can give?
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
100/100
From xXhermitXx 10/18/2018 04:05
Holy crap what a chart, have a bunch in common with me and a whole list of new ones to check out, i also loved your descriptions.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
100/100
From 
jdenny2018 10/18/2018 01:19
jdenny2018 10/18/2018 01:19
This is one of the most amazing things I've ever read
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
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