1001 Albums Summary

This is just not for me. Who knew that Ogre Battle would be my favourite song?

I enjoyed parts of this, especially Carry On and Woodstock and some of the production. But ultimately not for me.

I didn't dislike this as much as I thought I would. In fact, I could hear a bunch of things that likely influenced some of my favourite music, especially in the prog/post-rock space (though the music I like most in this genre is not especially heavy on the meandering lyrics about driving fast cars or Tom Sawyer). The drumming is fantastic, and worth it just to listen to that alone. The synth textures were also fun flourish. I could do without most of the vocals, which at times seem like an afterthought. I will probably listen to YYZ and Limelight again. I really enjoyed the first half of The Camera Eye before the vocals started.

It's hard for me to give this an unbiased listen, having followed Lorde since before her first album came out and gone to see her on the tour for this album. I also was deep into the lore, including the viral PowerPoint, so it's hard to be objective here. I do think this was a pioneering pop album at the time, as a concept album, in terms of production and in terms of the lyricism. It's influence on pop music in the last decade cannot be understated. I also think that the album is a victim of it's own success. Antonoff's production hallmarks on this album are so oversaturated to the point of derision. Lyrics now have to be witty, relatable, or full of lore for clickbait, to encourage more streams. That is not solely because of this album but an important part. There are standouts on this album for me. Greenlight is a standout, a weird and odd pop banger. Homemade Dynamite, Perfect Places - very cromulent pop songs. Outside of the singles, though, I think this album suffers from taking itself too seriously, with Lorde trying to overcome the huge success of Royals. I prefer the naiveté, clumsiness, and outsiderism of Pure Heroine.

I listened to this about 5 times in a row while walking around the busy shops, and never once felt stressed in any way. Aretha soothed my soul.

Music for boys and men who are either nostalgic for boyhood or who are still boys. And like all things for boys, the rest of us have to also engage with it for some reason, like Marvel Movies, cars, and dick measuring contests. Relatable lyrics designed to be shouted together. Melodies that you've heard before. Songs that can be played on almost any acoustic guitar by a novice and sound approximate to the record. This was like a drone in the background for me, and I literally listen to drone sometimes.