Prince - Purple Rain (1984)

Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to sing the praises of one of the greatest movie soundtracks of all time. In the movie he may have simply been known as "The Kid," but to everyone in Minneapolis, this album and many of his others cemented Prince as The King.

This album's ingenuity and rockabilly-funk production was so prominent upon the musical landscape at the time that it gave birth to a (short-lived) subgenre called "The Minneapolis Sound." Prince was a man possessed during this time period. He wrote 100+ songs for this film/album concept, not including the ones he wrote for The Time and Appolonia 6.

Any praise I heap upon Prince's writing or vocal talents on the record would only be redundant at this point. This is one of the undisputed classic albums of our generation. It would be pedestrian of me to mention the hard-rocking and demented Computer Blue, the steamy sex of Darling Nikki, or the stripped-down symphony that is When Doves Cry. But damn it, I just have to.

Even Prince must wonder how he did it. Last year he showed his longing for these days. He released an album called "MPLSound." It was critically panned and his fanbase treated it with embarrassment. Prince is at his best when he's plowing forward and not reaching towards his past. He's at his best when he's thinking about the innocuous images that catch his fancy: purple rain, crying doves and dirty girls who never call you back.

Meat Loaf - Bat Out of Hell (1977)

Not many albums can open with an eight minute opus and still keep the average listener's interest. Most albums that begin with an epic don't crank out a handful of smash hits that are still played today. The only thing Bat Out of Hell has going against it is the fact that, at times, it becomes a little bit too huge for its own good. The only thing that keeps the album from collapsing in on itself is the work of vocalist Michael "Meat Loaf" Adday and the arrangements of Todd Rundgren.

From the motorcycle gurgles on the title track to the rollicking and rocking riffage that covers "All Dressed Up With No Place To Go," Todd Rundgren is Bat Out of Hell's unsung hero. His playing saves Bat Out of Hell from being too dramatic and overblown. Rundgren manages to evoke a quirkiness in his playing which also gives this album something that other Meat Loaf albums desperately need: a sense of humor. This humor translates to the vocal department as well. "Loaf" spits, mumbles and sneers his way through several lyrics. He sounds like he's aware of how ridiculous it is for him to sing "And now my faded levis are bursting apart," on the closing ballad "For Crying Out Loud" and yet he doesn't care because he still believes in what he's singing. In his other work, Meat Loaf stares you dead in the eye and begs you to love him, here he is daring you not to.

Though Adday was a classically-trained singer who, by the time Bat Out of Hell was released, had performed on Broadway... he is not the star of this album. Though his name adorns the cover, it is Jim Steinman's gift for bombastic melodicism that made Bat Out of Hell one of the few albums to stay on the top 100 for more than 85 weeks.

The Beatles - Abbey Road (1969)

As children born of unhappy marriages prove, people don't have to like each other to create something wonderful together. By April of 1969, The Beatles reportedly could not stand each other anymore. There were creative disputes, degrading remarks made at each others' expense and a sense that the band could not even function any more. This album was an attempt to make records “the way they used to,” free of the bickering and tension that had been growing ever since The White Album. Unfortunately, this admirable goal was not met and this album would be the last thing The Beatles recorded together, (though Let It Be would be the final record they released.)

Side one of the record is pretty standard Beatles fare in terms of its construction. Concise, pretty, faultless pop songs full of gorgeous harmonies and wonderful lyrics and vocals. Each member of the band's voice is on top form on side one. Side two is where the magic really begins. It is home to a suite full of amazing musical ideas unlike any The Beatles had done before.

Abbey Road features very little in the way of collaboration between members. Each song serves as a singular extension of the songwriter behind it. This sounds like it could be a detriment but it works in the album's advantage. Each song works as a great “last word” from the Beatle that wrote it. And could there be any greater last word than Come Together? O Darling? Something? Octopus' Garden? Okay well, not everyone's last words are meaningful are poignant.

Olivia Tremor Control - Black Foliage (1999)

Olivia Tremor Control's album Black Foliage is the type of record The Beatles would have made if they stuck together after Abbey Road, took even more insane amounts of psychoactive drugs and wrote music whilst their brains were slowly deteriorating. In short it is a beautifully psychedelic mishmash of gorgeous melodies, innocuous lyrics and a sense that you are experiencing a beautiful nightmare from which you can not wake.

Black Foliage feels cold and calculated in the warmest possible way. Random horn overdubs come blaring out of nowhere, string sections jut in and out, over and under recordings. It's host to some amazing key-changes as well, taking a section that used to feel peaceful and beautiful and turning it around to feel its insidious inner darkness. Every transition, as jarring as weird as it can seem, somehow feels right. The album is littered with four second segueway tracks which don't feel like anything more than the organic bumpiness in an otherwise smooth train-ride. This is one album you need to listen to multiple times before forming an opinion on.

Most albums can be classified as either a summer or winter album. This album is an anomaly because it sounds different depending on the season you play it in. Its inhuman, strange and industrial qualities make it a fitting listen for Winter but its soothing vocals and cutesy lyrics make it a great album to listen to in the sunshine.

Oasis - What's The Story, Morning Glory? (1995)

Noel Gallagher, lead guitarist and songwriter of Oasis, has often said in interviews that he does not understand the meaning of his own lyrics. He is not alone in that, as many fans will admit that Oasis lyrics are oftentimes nonsense. Emotion-inspiring nonsense, but nonsense but nonsense nonetheless. So how is it that for a decade or so, these lyrics were shouted in arenas across the world? How did Oasis become, for a short time anyways, the biggest band in the world?

The answer lies in the album "What's The Story, Morning Glory?' This album is the perfect synergy of two brothers who couldn't be more different, are constantly at odds with each other, and yet are still brought together by the power of their chemistry.

Liam's voice, though blown now, was an amazing gift for rock and roll. It had all the clarity and sentimentality of John Lennon with an aggression and pack-a-day grit all its own. Noel's guitar-playing is tasteful and melodic whilst being soul-sweepingly epic. These siblings may have run their mouths in interviews at the expense of their reputations, but they never treated their songs with anything but care and respect.

This album is a thick Manchester slab of emotion and a perfect capsule of the way the world was moving in the late nineties. So when Champagne Supernova starts up, don't be surprised if you feel a lump in your throat, even if you don't know what Noel is going on about. Oasis teaches us that words aren't nearly as important in a great rock song as soul is.

Muse - Origin of Symmetry

Due to its anti-religious statements, Matt Bellamy had to change the lyrics to the final track on Origin of Symmetry in order to get a church's permission to record the song with their organ. It's quite ironic then that this album has some of the most deeply spiritual and powerful moments in the entire Muse canon.

The album may have beautiful, psalm like melodies, a transcendent falsetto by Matt Bellamy, a unique and crushing rhythm section and thoughtful lyrics, but for the most part it does not cover religion (they would tackle that subject on their next album, Absolution). No, Origin of Symmetry is based on the fact that we are envious, weak and powerless creatures who are separated further and further due to technology.

The songs that best exemplify this are "Screenager," "Bliss" (a song in which Matt pleas with the listener to "give me all the peace and joy in your mind"), Micro Cuts (which uses the metaphor that technology is our puppetmaster) to great effect, and Dark Shines (which seems to be about an abusively destructive relationship. "Your innocence, I will consume."

It's some of the most mind-altering music you can listen to and you will be forever changed after listened to it. It's the musical equivalent of a disturbing film like A Clockwork Orange, only a little less disturbing and rape-filled.

Imagine an album with the raw, weird funk and sexuality of classic Prince, the pop-stylings of The Doobie Brothers. Oh and also imagine that the song "What A Fool Believes" by the Doobie Brothers is covered on said album. Now imagine that the album was recorded only with kids toys and instruments.

So goes the story behind Gizmodgery by Self. Gizmodgery is a unique album, featuring appearances from a one-string Children's guitar, a Sing 'N Speak Keyboard and countless other children's percussion instruments.

The songs (and most of the instrumentation) belong to the frighteningly talented Matt Mahaffey. The production is disturbingly high-class. The children's keyboards actually sound fantastic, their warm analog sounds in harsh contrast to the cold compressed digital keyboard sounds used in music today.

Matt's lyrics and vocals are cynical and oftentimes rooted in humor as is the case on Trunk Fulla Amps, which features several parodies on world-famous bands.

The album is stylistically rich. Between Hip-Hop, Funk, 90's Alt Rock and Heavy Metal, you'll feel full by the time Ilovetoloveyourlove, the album's romantic doo-wop closer, plays you out. This song features the most amazing guitar solo played ever played on one string. The next time you visit a newborn baby's house, maybe you and him can jam to some of the songs on here together (though definitely not Trunk Fulla Amps due to its gratuitous use of "the f word.")



(I can't stress how brilliant the rest of the songs on the album are. This is just the tip of the iceberg. Make sure to check out some of the other tracks which that youtube user has kindly uploaded.)

Jellyfish - Spilt Milk (1993)

This album is absolutely timeless. As each track weaves its way into the next, I sometimes forget that this album was released in 1993 by a band on the brink of destruction. This album feels more like a classic rock band (The Beatles, Queen) at the top of their game creating the masterpiece for which they'll be remembered.

This album has vocal harmonies that would make Freddie Mercury proud. Envious, in fact. In fact, the vocal work, on this album oftentimes sounds like a fusion Freddie Mercury and Brian Wilson's (The Beach Boys) . Really, the whole album is very reminiscient of Queen, with its ability to change dynamics at the drop of the hat; piano stabs transition into a hard-rocking stomp on the second track "Joining a Fan Club" which was preceded by a lullaby simply titled Hush.

It's really this album's ability to retain a sense of child-like wonder while still sounding totally honest that fascinates most. Sebrina, Paste and Plato is one part the tale of a classroom having lunch, two parts love song, 1 part random heavy riff, one part majestic orchestral fanfare outro. All in two minutes flat.

With its dopey but classic keyboards, expertly composed orchestral parts, laboured vocal harmonies and catchy melodies this album is already a winner. But with all the innocence and beauty, does it find any time to kick ass? With all the throwbacks to 60s and 70s rock, does it find a way to not sound dated? Hell yes, it does. Check out "All Is Forgiven", a track that almost rocks too hard for this album.

Spilt Milk is an eccentric mess... but not at all unaccessible. Check it out, because with its organic, one-take sound and the way it wears its feelings on its sleeve, it manages to evoke something that most music today can't: genuine human emotion.

Weezer - The Blue Album (1994)

1994 was a difficult year for commercial rock. Grunge was just about finished thanks in no small part to Cobain's untimely passing and mainstream pop was particularly uninspired. Everyone was rebelling violently and cursing angrily at nothing in particular. It began to feel as if in order to truly rebel, you had to be happy. And that's exactly what Rivers Cuomo did.

Combining the best elements of The Pixies, Nirvana, The Beach Boys and The Beatles Weezer's debut record set the world on fire. With its combination of thick distorted guitars over poppy hooks, clever dynamic changes and unprocessed vocals, it felt as if the album was recorded in the band's garage. The playing on the album has the energy and vigor of a high school band featuring the songwriting talent of a seasoned pro.

The album's lyrics are not technically jawdropping (Cuomo is no master of prose) but they feel effortless and pure. They are flawlessly imperfect. "Say It Ain't So," overplayed as it may be, is still a lyrical tour de force. It is the perfect expression of a young man's fear and resentment of alcohol due to its destructive effect on two of his mother's marriages. And that's not to discredit some of the more basic lyrics, as they all feature clever lines and heartbreaking earnesty.

The home to several hit singles, the album was both a critical and commercial darling. "Undone (The Sweater Song)" might just be the catchiest song ever written about an existential funk and "Buddy Holly" is a heartwarming tale of platonic love. But it's the deep album tracks that prove just what a unique talent and entity Weezer was. Despite not making a great album in over a decade, their fans have always stuck with them, and when you hear the final jawdropping guitar solo finale to the epic album closer "Only in Dreams", you will see why.

The Beach Boys - Pet Sounds (1966)

Brian Wilson was the original tortured genius of modern pop, forget everything else you've heard. How do I know this? Well because when I entered "Tortured pop genius" into Google, searching for an artist to compare him to, I saw that he was the first result. But I also know this because of the Beach Boys' legendary record Pet Sounds

Pet Sounds was released on May 16, 1966 and is notable for featuring some of the most beautiful love songs of all time as well as numerously catchy pop singles. The album is notable for its peppy organ and keyboard work which is perfectly enhanced by an orchestra. The cherry on top of this aural sundae is Brian Wilson's pitch-perfect falsetto delivery and moans.

This album isn't just about love, though. Brian Wilson, especially for this time period, was writing some really personal lyrics, often revealing his insecurity, loneliness and sorrow. This is especially apparent in the album's arguably greatest moment: a song called "I Just Wasn't Made For These Times." It is a song in which Brian wonders why things always seem to go wrong for him and confesses the title statement with a voice so sorrowful it makes him sound much older than the 23 year old he was while recording. Combined with the utterly relateable sentiment of the lyrics and the mindblowing background vocal harmonies, it is a shiver-inducing, mind-blowing song and yet... it still feels human. And that is a perfect example of why Pet Sounds is revered by nearly everyone who gives it a shot.

Albert Hammond, Jr. - ¿Cómo Te Llama? (2009)

As the second of his self-penned albums, ¿Cómo Te Llama? is an important moment for the Strokes rhythm guitarist Albert Hammond Jr. as well as his solo career. Thankfully, this is not that all-too familiar story of a sophomore screw-up. Improving off of his debut in every way, Albert Hammond Jr. weaves together a unique mesh of sounds and styles. Albert's vocals are not all-that impressive, but their power and presence transcends any weaknesses he may have as a vocalist. Almost every song is full of rebellion, positivity and catchy melodies and big choruses. It is, however, the slower numbers "Spooky Couch" (a beautiful instrumental piece) and "You Won't Be Fooled By This" (a wistful ballad) which reveal a much more tender side of Albert's songwriting and prove to be the album's greatest strength. He may not have as many songwriting credits as his Strokes band-mates, but on this album he proves his influence on the group, showing why he is an integral part of the garage-rocking collective.

All in all, though, the best song on here (and one that I urge everyone who reads this to check out) is definitely the opener, "Bargain of A Century." The song has a rapidfire bass intro which builds to a beautiful, keyboard-covered main hook, followed by a melancholy verse. The highlight of the song is the utterly heart-rendering guitar solo that is restrained and yet show-stopping. And that right is the perfect way to describe ¿Cómo Te Llama?.

Like this recommendation? Don't agree with this review? I'd love to hear your thoughts! Feel free to leave me a comment!