2025 in 2025: Day 93

Heartbreak a Stranger - Ryan Adams

This would appear to be a live single (two songs) and I have zero recollection of it being released, but then it was during a time when DRA was releasing a single every other week. And my memory is pretty hazy at the best of times.

Highlights: Black Sheets of Rain

7/10

Heartbreaker - Ryan Adams

Bah gawd what a rollicking way to kickstart an album. Especially when 90% of what comes after is sad and mopey. I know people (including DRA) act like Come Pick Me is like is crown jewel or whatever, but I would boldly declare Oh My Sweet Caroline to be the peak of his work here. The chord strikes coming out of the solo are beautiful. Bonus points to the banjo in Come Pick Me Up, though.

Highlights: To Be Young (is to be sad, is to be high), Oh My Sweet Caroline, Come Pick Me Up, Call Me on Your Way Back Home

7/10

Heartbreaker Deluxe - Ryan Adams

Guess it is a Ryan Adams and Heartbreak kind of morning? A lot of this is outtakes - some of which ended up being released further down the line. Did he ever do a proper studio take of Petal in a Rainstorm? Because the take on here is VERY good. 

Highlights: Petal in a Rainstorm, When the Rope Gets Tight, Locked Away (Demo), To Be Young (Demo)

7/10

Heartland - Real Life

This is purely Send Me an Angel. That opening synth is killer when the bass kicks in. iTunes says it is actually "Send Me an Angel '89 [Dance Mix]". Yet the year is labelled as 1983. I need some tea.

8/10

Heat - Jimmy Barnes

The bridge on Sweat it Out is very great. When I was a teen and this came out, I thought Stand Up sounded very much like Faith No More. As an adult I can freely state that kids are stupid. 

Highlights: I'd Rather Be Blind, Stand Up, Something's Got a Hold, A Little Bit of Love

7/10

Heathen - David Bowie

There was a period where every Bowie album was met with 'Bowie is back to his brilliant best' and drew comparisons to his work in the 70s. And always it was just forgotten until the next album came along. I liked some of these even more when performed live.

Highlights: Afraid, I've Been Waiting For You, 5:15 The Angels Have Gone, Heathen (The Rays)

6/10

Heathen [Bonus Disc] - David Bowie

Like it says on the box! A couple of remixes, a couple of outtakes. The outtakes are decent?

Highlights: Conversation Piece, Panic in Detroit

6/10

Heathen Chemistry - Oasis

Gosh I feel like I have written about this before... A real mixed bag; some killer classic-style Oasis songs and some really generic radio rock stuff. Liam's voice is awesome. In fact, these guys have had the same thing as Bowie since this album; it - and every one since - was labelled as being their best album since whenever they were at the peak of their popularity. Music press need to get their brains together.

Highlights: The Hindu Times, Stop Crying Your Heart Out, Little By Little, Force of Nature

7.5/10

Heave on Earth - Belinda Carlisle

Let's talk about Belinda Carlisle's voice, shall we? She is certainly not actually that great of a singer, however there is something in her tone and delivery that absolutely works. And these songs are pretty much just great. Like a slightly rocked up Wilson Phillips, with less amazing harmonies.

Highlights: Heaven is a Place on Earth, I Feel Free, I Get Weak, Love Never Dies...

8/10

Helicopter Soup - Ryan Adams

I have moved a few random DRA songs that had no home to this album. Look Who Got a Website definitely belongs on an album called Helicopter Soup. I would really like to have heard a final version of So Lost. 

Highlights: Look Who Got a Website (Dot Com Motherfucker), So Lost [Dirty Power Demo], So Lost

6.5/10

Hell in a Handbasket - Meat Loaf

It almost sounds like Andrew W.K. and his band are backing Meat Loaf here. And wowsers he sounds old. And Chuck D turning up here is certainly random - but a pleasant surprise. Mostly harmless big-sounding rock stuff.

Highlights: Mad Mad World/The Good God Is A Woman And She Don't Like Ugly [Feat. Chuck D], Stand In The Storm [Feat. Lil Jon, John Rich & Mark McGrath]

6/10

Hello - Poe

There is so much going on with this album; all sorts of different genres and styles and it was probably considered very alternative at the time. The trip-hop wannabe jazz songs must have really confused the alt rock kids who were buying this for songs like Trigger Happy Jack. Speaking from experience...

Highlights: Trigger Happy Jack (Drive By A Go-Go), Choking The Cherry, Beautiful Girl, Fly Away

7/10

"Albums" listened to so far: 764

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2025 in 2025: Day 92

He Got Game - Public Enemy

Would you believe this is the only full Public Enemy album I have ever actually listened to? I am going to correct that in 2026. This album goes hard, but does also feel very 1998 to me. The samples are great and Chuck D's lyrics are on point!

Highlights: Resurrection, He Got Game, Shake Your Booty, What You Need is Jesus, Go Cat Go

8/10

The Head on the Door - The Cure

This is pretty much the best 80s pop album by The Cure - a stunning combination of dark numbers and upbeat pop danciness. And it is all quick and to the point. No messing around here. That opening riff in Push is the absolute stuff.

Highlights: In Between Days, Push, Close to Me, Sinking

8/10

Heart and Soul - Joy Division

This is, of course, the full 4-disc collection. Which means I am sitting here listening to a full six hours of Joy Division. And, you know, it is great. Ian Curtis was a mad man. Quite literally. I have to say, I think disc 2 is my favourite of all this; the Closer album is solid and Love Will Tear Us Apart is genuinely their greatest track. When I made my terrible punk EP, it is crazy how much I was subconsciously influenced by these guys in part. And then the whole An Ideal for Living EP is so completely different to everything else - just full on punk awesomeness. Yeah, I am taking it back - this whole disc 3 is head-drillingly awesome. What I really enjoyed going through all this is hearing those little bits of the New Order sound coming through every so often. The live disc does not do much for me, however.

Highlights: She's Lost Control, Shadowplay, Love Will Tear Us Apart, Warsaw, These Days, No Love Lost, Insight

7/10

"Albums" listened to so far: 752

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2025 in 2025: Day 91

HALFTIME REPORT

Notice I say "time"? Here we are, halfway through 2025 and I have only just finished the "G" albums and am not even 2/5 through everything. In fact, when I break it down by song, I have still listened to much less than half. Apparently I need to listen to 215 albums per month to finish this before the end of the year. Let us see if LOGMAN can pull it together in the next 6 months and make more effort here, but it is hard when I choose to spend my working hours watching WCW instead of listening to music and, you know... working...

Hakkin No Yoake - Momoiro Clover Z

This is purely the song Z No Chikai. It bothers me to no end that these titles are all in romaji, but that is the fault of iTunes being racist or something. This song rules.

10/10

Halcyon (International Version) - Ellie Goulding

This is very likely the first time I have ever listened to this album. I wasn't missing much. Very typical English pop singer that can barely sing and hides behind good production on average songs. It is just Florence + The Machine - Powerful Singing.

Highlights: I Need Your Love, My Blood, Halcyon, Lights

6/10

Halfway Between the Gutter and Stars - Fat Boy Slim

This is purely Weapon of Choice. I am not sure why, because I am sure I did have this full album at one point. Or maybe I am confused? Fun song.

8/10

Hands All Over - Maroon 5

These dudes get a lot of stick, but I genuinely enjoy most of their music and an album like this is fairly harmless; every second song is really good and then every other song is fine, so it is a decent offering of the Maroon 5 brand of pop rock. I am not sure they are the band to be covering Queen, but it was not offensive or anything.

Highlights: Misery, Stutter, Never Gonna Leave This Bed, Just a Feeling

7/10

Hands of Gravity- the HIATUS

This album is probably the most straight-forward/less adventurous from the HIATUS. It does, however, end with the greatest song they ever recorded. Possibly a top five song from 細美さん, even. The drumming and piano really lift it to the next level.

Highlights: Sunburn, Geranium, Drifting Story, Radio

7/10

Happiness? - Roger Taylor

So this must have been Mr. Taylor's first post-Queen album? Why is he pronouncing Nazi like he is American? I find it strangely off-putting. But dude is here singing about people being oppressed in Ukraine like he is some sort of prophet. Or the world has just been a terrible place for a long time. Next thing he will be out there saying Free Palestine or something.

Highlights: Revelations, Touch the Sky, Old Friends

6/10

Happiness... Is Not A Fish That You Can Catch - Our Lady Peace

I have zero idea how someone could listen to this album and think Mike Turner needs to be replaced by someone that is more suited to something like Foo Fighters. Dude had character. So did Raine's voice - his falsetto on Blister is mad. And bah gawd Jeremy Taggart was a beast on the drums - dude had mad feel and added so much power to their songs. In case you missed it, this album fucking OWNS. A little more refined than Clumsy with twice the emotion.

Highlights: One Man Army, Potato Girl, Is Anybody Home?, Waited, Lying Awake, Stealing Babies

9/10

Happy Pills - Candlebox

This album was a staple in my 'jam along' playlist back in like 1998 to 2001. I wonder if I could still play these tracks? I probably won't be rating it as highly now as I would have back then, but it sure is still very good. I am reminded of their interview to promote this album, calling it "good quality shit, right here".

Highlights: It's Alright, A Stone's Throw Away, Sometimes, Step Back

7.5/10

A Hard Day's Night - The Beatles

After a whole bunch of powerful late 90s rock, it is nice to get a smile with one of a great classic rock'n roll album. Which is just a regular day in the office for The Beatles. Lennon's voice on this one is super cool. I can see why it influenced Cobain so much. 

Highlights: A Hard Day's Night, Any Time At All, Can't Buy Me Love, I'll Cry Instead, You Can't Do That

7/10

Hatsukoi - 宇多田 ヒカル

So many cool time signatures and different rhythms and beats going on in here. Whoever produced this album deserves a high five and a bunch of grammys if you feel so inclined, because it is just masterful. Pretty sure the backing vocals are the blueprint for how you want them to sound.

Highlights: あなた, パクチーの唄, 夕凪, 嫉妬されるべき人生

7/10

Haunted - Poe

What Poe lacks in singing ability she certainly makes up for with songwriting, because this album is a completely different beast to her debut (which also is not far away) and lyrically it is just top-tier business. And the tape excerpts between songs add a different dimension to the whole thing. And honestly that last song is just heartbreaking.

Highlights: Haunted, Control, Walk the Walk, Could've Gone Mad, Wild

8/10

Have a Nice Day - Bon Jovi

I always felt this was kind of modern-sounding for Bon Jovi at the time. And after the dour attitude on Bounce, it is all mostly upbeat and good vibes and a bit more what fans like me wanted from them. It rocks. It is fun. But where the hell was Sambora?!?!

Highlights: Welcome to Wherever You Are, Bells of Freedom, Have a Nice Day, Novocaine

7.5/10

"Albums" listened to so far: 749

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2025 in 2025: Day 90

The Guest - Phantom Planet

It is interesting to me that Jason Schwartzman comes across as a mostly pretentious douche in all those Wes Anderson movies, yet he can make some really bland pop rock like this. Then again, he did co-write the two awesome songs on the album AND he was very good in Scott Pilgrim vs The World. So maybe it is just the Wes Anderson thing? He should stop starring in those movies and I would probably think better of him. But that could apply to anyone!

Highlights: California, Lonely Day, Always on My Mind [London Version], All Over Again

6.5/10

Guilty - Barbra Streisand

Babs goes disco! But not really. The King of The 70s, Barry Gibb, could make an awesome album with me - and Barbra Streisand is no LOGMAN. Which means she can sing helluva awesome. So yeah, this album is just fantastic.

Highlights: Guilty, Promises, What Kind of Fool, Life Story

8/10

GUILTY - Ayumi Hamasaki

This album is a combination of big boombastic rock and adventurous pop stylings. And it all blends together perfectly. The rock stuff is epic; massive guitars, huge drums and the songs go HARD! I cannot begin to express just how much I love the acoustic guitar in fated. I live for it.

Highlights: talkin' 2 myself, decision, fated, MY ALL

8.5/10

Guilty Pleasures - Barbra Streisand

While Guilty was a pop masterclass, the sequel is still very well done, just much more of a mature 'adult' pop album. Which makes sense, since B & B were now 25 years older. Which was 20 years ago... holy bananas. And I just read that Barry Gibb released his own demos of the Guilty album. That might be a more interesting listen.

Highlights: Stranger in a Strange Land, Night of My Life, All the Children

6/10

Gutterflower - Goo Goo Dolls

Did we ever get a definitive answer on whether they are "The" Goo Goo Doll or just Goo Goo Dolls? Well, even if that has not been decided, I have certainly decided that I criminally ignore these guys - because they make very very good pop rock. Like, a lot of it is sneakily upbeat. Great lyrics, too. I may have to check out some of their stuff that came after this album, because I have heard probably one song after this album and I can no longer justify ignoring them.

Highlights: Big Machine, Think About Me, Here is Gone, Tucked Away

8/10

"Albums" listened to so far: 737

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2025 in 2025: Day 89

The Grey Album - Danger Mouse

I genuinely consider this to be a very clever concept, and the execution is pretty much brilliant. What More Can I Say mixed with While My Guitar Gently Weeps becomes a completely different beast. 

Highlights: What More Can I Say, 99 Problems, Change Clothes, Allure

7.5/10

Groovejet (If This Ain't Love) - Spiller

The song that introduced the world to Sophie Ellis-Bextor. And this sounds a lot like the music she would do on her own - just a bit more of a house dance kind of thing. Still a perfect Summer song.

10/10

Guero - Beck

This dude is such hit or miss sometimes. And I feel like I have to be in the right mood to really appreciate his silliness. But it is good working music, due to the rhythm and grooves.

Highlights: E-Pro, Que Onda Guero, Hell Yes, Send a Message to Her

6.5/10

Gureolito - Beck

And now for the remix version of Guero. Which is just pretty much the same? Maybe a little less good?

Highlights: Shake Shake Tambourine (Black Tambourine) - Adrock Remix, Ghettochip Malfunction (Hell Yes) - 8bit Remix, Scarecrow - El-P Remix

6/10

THE GUERRiLLA BiSH - BiSH

This is my kind of album. BiSH were my kind of band! Bah gawd SHARR is just pure madness and screaming. The album certainly trails off about halfway through, but that is only because the start of the album is so awesome. And then it gets almost as awesome at the end. And in-between is a big barrel of fun and crazy and crazy fun!

Highlights: My landscape, SHARR, Smack Baby Smack, プロミスザスター, パール, FOR HiM

9/10

"Albums" listened to so far: 732

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2025 in 2025: Day 88

Greatest Hits - Ice Cube

This is purely You Can Do It, because this song is one helluva a badass track. I should have the full album, or at least more Ice Cube, probably.

9/10

Greatest Hits - Falco

You know the drill; this is just Rock Me Amadeus and... Putting on the Ritz? That's not even a Falco song. This version of Rock Me Amadeus seems to be some sort of remix. Clearly I need to sort this out...

8/10

Greatest Hits - Bob Seger

An actual full album - though I do hesitate to call a greatest hits compilation an album. Bob Seger is highly underrated. I am not saying that he is the greatest rocker ever or anything like that, but he has some seriously fantastic songs that should be played on classic rock radio stations a lot more. For those weirdos that still listen to radio stations.

Highlights: Hollywood Nights, Still the Same, Night Moves, Against the Wind

7/10

Greatest Hits - Aretha Franklin

Bah gawd this woman could sing. This contains a whole lot of cover songs, but also a nice range of her soul classics and 80s jams. I think I may actually prefer the Blues Brothers version of Think.

Highlights: I Knew You Were Waiting, Respect, Like a Natural Woman, Rock Steady

7/10

Greatest Hits - Diana Ross

This is purely I'm Coming Out, which is a glorious display of funk and pop and dance.

10/10

Greatest Hits - 2Pac

Surprisingly, I have never really been much of a 2Pac fan. However, I have Changes and All About U, because they are killer. Changes is definitely better than that Van Morrison song.

10/10

Greatest Hits - Joe Tex

This is just Ain't Gonna Bump No More - which may well be the funnest funky song on the planet. How have I never heard more Joe Tex?

10/10

Greatest Hits III - Queen+

This is basically the Queen+ portion of the album, since I have all the rest elsewhere. But why has No One But You not been released elsewhere?

Highlights: The Show Must Go On (Live w/Elton John), Somebody to Love (Live w/George Michael), No One But You

9/10

Greatest Hits Live - Ace Frehley

When I did Kissathon II, these songs had been split across a couple of older Ace Frehley compilations. It has since been released as its own album, so it is nice to have them all in once place - even if it is clearly two different concerts. The two bonus studio tracks are the absolute best songs.

Highlights: One Plus One, Give it to Me Anyway, Shock Me (Live), Stranger in a Strange Land (Live)

8/10

Greatest Hits Live - Split Enz

Not sure how I ended up with this, but it is purely Six Months in a Leaky Boat. I would be interested to hear the rest of the album. And my library certainly needs more Split Enz.

9/10

Greatest Hits Vol. 1 - KoЯn

Thank Prime this is just their cover of Word Up! Which is vastly inferior to both the original and the Gun cover. That version rocks the cocks!

7/10

Greatest Kiss - Kiss

I have said it before and I will say it again, but this is the best Kiss compilation. And while I have all these songs on their respective albums, I will never remove this from my library, because sometimes you just need an awesome Kiss compilation to get you in the groove.

Highlights: The Whole Kit and Caboodle

10/10

"Albums" listened to so far: 727

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2025 in 2025: Day 87

Greatest Hits - Smokie
I genuinely had no idea Needles and Pins was not an original song by the Ramones! It is not an original song by Smokie, either, but I have no recollection of hearing their version until now. And it is awesome. I grew up listening to some sort of Smokie compilation on all road trips, but half of these songs I do not remember at all. In fact, it does not feature half of the songs I remember from that tape! Regardless, these are good songs.
Highlights: Needles and Pins, Don't Play Your Rock'n Roll to Me, Oh Carol, Wild Wild Angels
7/10

Greatest Hits - Will Smith

How do I not have the full album of this? I mean, Will Smith is all sorts of awesome and his Fresh Prince days were all pretty killer. Shame on my name and my game!

Highlights: Nod Your Head (Black Suit's Comin'), Summertime, Boom! Shake the Room

9/10

Greatest Hits - MC Hammer

This is purely Addams Groove. Because I have every other song from this album on their original albums. LOGMAN does not play when it comes to his Hammer collection. This song is as cool now as it was almost 35 years ago.

9/10

Greatest Hits - INXS

Genuinely one of the best Australian bands ever. And this is just a killer compilation.

Highlights: Taste It, The Strangest Party (These are the Times), Need You Tonight, New Sensation

9/10

Greatest Hits - Al Green

This is purely Let's Stay Together. It is a beautiful soul jam. It is weird that I do not really know more Al Green...

10/10

"Albums" listened to so far: 715

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