2025 in 2025: Day 53

Destroyer - Ryan Adams

Not a cover of the Kiss album. That is disappointing. What it is instead is very low-fi acoustic alt country and it is all very fine. There is some weird synth or something in Bartering Lines. And then it all ends with a song that sounds like it is absolutely not from the same sessions, because it sounds like The Cardinals making noise rock complete with way too much wah.

Highlights: Born Yesterday, Poison and Pain, Memories of You

7/10

Destroyer - Kiss

Oh, this is the album I was after! Detroit Rock City is so awesome. So is King of the Night Time World. And the rest of the album. I must be in one of those moods this morning, because this album is hitting all the right notes for me today. 

Highlights: Detroit Rock City, King of the Night Time World, God of Thunder, Shout it Out Loud, Do You Love Me

9/10

Destroyer (45th Anniversary Super Deluxe) - Kiss

I actually kind of did talk about this before, but I'm willing to do it again. Manly because I have removed all the demos and stuff that I did not want to listen to again. Maturity is realising you don't need every song in the world in your iTunes library. This acoustic remix of Beth is good until that synth kicks in - very unnecessary. And I really dig Ain't None of Your Business - darn cool song! The rest of this is just the Destroyer album in various single edits and early mixes and even instrumentals. Beats listening to demos of bad Gene songs, I guess.

Highlights: Shout it Out Loud [Single Edit], Do You Love Me? [Alternate Mix], Ain't None of Your Business

7/10

Destroyer {Resurrected} - Kiss

Am I sick of this album yet? Luckily, listening to the {Resurrected} version is like listening to it with fresh ears. I think I like this version of Sweet Pain a little more? And not just because Ace 's guitar solo has been restored. I mean, you should always choose Ace Frehley guitar solos over everything. Actually, this mix of Beth is better as well - they've mixed in a little bit more acoustic guitar to fill things out nicely. Honestly, today has transformed my opinion on this album; I've generally considered it overrated, and while it is still not my favourite Kiss album, it is still better than you. Unless you are LA Park? Or Dr. Wagner, Jr.

Highlights: Sweet Pain (2012 Remix)

10/10 once I remove Rock and Roll Party and the Ace-less version of Sweet Pain

Details - Frou Frou

Imogen Heap was totally the 'it' girl back in 2005, right? And it felt like Guy Sigsworth was everywhere doing everything with everyone. I don't think I have listened to this since 2005... It feels like I might have some sort of deluxe version, because this album totally runs out of steam after 10 tracks and just gets really self-indulgent. But those first 10 tracks are awesome. It's no Destroyer, but it is a great collection of electronic pop music.

Highlights: Breathe In, Let Go, Only Got One, Shh

7/10

Devil's Night - D12

Another album I probably have not listened to since 2003. I totally dug Eminem back in the day, and thought this album would be cool. It is a bit too rude for me - I don't dig all the gross sex talk and what not. When that isn't going on, the songs are fun. How is it he mentioned him in a million songs but Eminem can not get that it is Christophe Reeve not Reeves? I need to seek out the radio version of Purple Pills - pretty sure it was called Purple Hills and Bizarre's rap was way different. Proof was the best rapper of the crew and his voice was cool. There are a lot more homophobic slurs than I remember.

Highlights: Shit Can Happen, That's How, Purple Pills, Instigator, Obie Trice (Skit), Revelation

6.5

"Albums" listened to so far: 413

2025 in 2025: Day 52

Decade of Decadence - Mötley Crüe

Album #400! The first Mötley Crüe compilation and it had an actual purpose; it is two songs from all of their studio albums up to this point in time. So if you were like me and only discovering them from Dr. Feelgood, this gives you a nice little taster of all their previous albums. And two is the perfect number, because there really are only two good songs on Girls, Girls, Girls. Live Wire and Piece of Your Action get remixed again to make them sound less budget. The massive outerspace reverb on the vocals might be a bit much, to be honest. They've also re-recorded Home Sweet Home. Controversial opinion; this version is better. The real piano sounds infinitely better than the tinny keyboards used in 1985, Vince's voice sounds much more polished, and Tommy's drums sound massive. Good production, yo! The whole thing is capped with new songs; Rock'n Roll Junkie is pretty awesome (ok, not technically new, but like you care) and Primal Scream is super awesome. Angela is actually pretty cool as well - fantastic hook in the chorus. Then we finish things off with the best rendition of a Sex Pistols song ever. This album is worth it just for the last 4 songs.

Highlights: Home Sweet Home '91, Primal Scream, Angela, Anarchy in the U.K.

10/10

Decadence - Head Automatica

Early 00s emo rock, but not actually emo and more groovy? Legit no idea how to explain it. There are very good songs, some not very good songs, and then a bunch of 'hey it's on in the background' kind of thing? It was cheap, so I'm cool with it. And I have probably listened to this album much more than one would expect.

Highlights: Dance Party Plus, Disco Hades II, I Shot William H. Macy

7/10

Def Jam 1985-2001: History of Hip Hop, Vol. 1 - Various Artists

I am not going to pretend this is anything more than Jay-Z killing it with Can I Get A... Like I said, he is killing it. First Jay-Z song I ever heard and I immediately knew he was the man. Ja Rule, however, can suck a phat one and I have also thought that since day one.

10/10

Definitely Maybe - Oasis

I still remember when this album came out; I heard Live Forever and thought it was a great song, but then Oasismania took over and I decided they were the worst band ever. I still think this album is overrated, but I at least can stop being edgy and thinking that song is anything but a fantastic pop rock song. I like when Oasis rock it out on songs like Bring It On Down, and Supersonic just oozes with attitude. You really need to be Liam Gallagher to pull that off properly.

Highlights: Live Forever, Supersonic, Bring It On Down, Slide Away 

8/10

+ (Deluxe Version) - Ed Sheeran

I have no idea how iTunes decided this comes next - are they ignoring the plus symbol and brackets? What does he mean someone should own a VHS player instead of a DVD player? And what has he got against blu-ray? 

Highlights: The a Team, You Need Me I Don't Need You, Give Me Love

6/10

Demolition - Ryan Adams

Well, at least they are not really demos? And mostly good songs? It is all just a bit mixed up. Starting to Hurt performed on Letterman was awesome - the second performance, not the original one in 2002. 

Highlights: Hallelujah, Desire, Cry On Demand, Chin Up Cheer Up

7/10

Desensitized - Drowning Pool

This is only the song Step Up. I think it was in some WWF songs pack that I downloaded at some point - strange to have this and not Bodies, which was infinitely more popular and I remember being used during the WCW Invasion nonsense. BUT this song is definitely better and totally sounds like something from a WWF show.

8/10

Destiny Fulfilled - Destiny's Child

Another 'one song' album. This time it is Lose My Breath. Totally badass song and probably the first (and only?) Destiny's Child song I liked. Before Beyoncé became this nonsense. Come at me, Beyhive! Shizz, I ain't afraid of you mofos!

8/10

"Albums" listened to so far: 407

2025 in 2025: Day 51

Daydream - Mariah Carey

Wasn't this, like, the peak of Mariah's popularity? Or was that earlier in life? I know that, at the time, I thought One Sweet Day was the worst possible musical combo in the universe. I think I was just trying to be edgy, because there is no way I thought this was the worst song ever even back then. And we all know Boyz II Men can sing awesome as hell. Oh, now we get Mariah singing a Journey ballad? That's a nice surprise. 

Highlights: One Sweet Day, Fantasy, Open Arms, Always Be My Baby

8/10

Daydreaming/Choose Me [Single] - BAND-MAID

Choose Me is awesome and I am super happy to get some more BAND-MAID.

10/10

Daylight - Needtobreathe

Christian pop-rock time! These guys were pretty popular when I was at church and stuff, but even then I waited until I found the CD for $1 before buying. And honestly, it is pretty decent. Lyrics are a bit preachy and self-important, but musically these songs are solid.

Highlights: Don't Wait for Daylight, Shine On, Haley, You Are Here, Lost

7/10

Dazed and Confused (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) - Various Artists

Oooh yeah, one of the most important albums of my high school growth. Funnily enough, for all the killer songs in that movie, this soundtrack actually could have been even more awesome? But it still rocks. Hard. My CD is actually scratched badly, and so there are some skips and whatnot during some of the songs, so I am on a bit of a mission to replace the whole album with the original albums these all appeared on. I really should finish that off. Also, this version of Rock and Roll All Nite is just odd and I have to assume it was a re-record by the 80s lineup?

Highlights: Rock and Roll Hoochie Koo - Rick Derringer, School's Out - Alice Cooper, Tuesday's Gone - Lynyrd Skynyrd, Fox on the Run - Sweet, but yeah the whole album rocks my socks

9/10

De La Soul is Dead - De La Soul

Possibly their weirdest album. A whole bunch of songs that are barely songs and random skits about people being not good - which are generally fun. Who Do You Worship? is super hilarious. Then the last half of the album features a lot more solid old school hip-hop grooves and I go home happy. Pretty sure I've been singing the hook to Ring Ring Ring for 35 years now...

Highlights: Ring Ring Ring (Ha Ha Hey), Keepin' the Faith, A Roller Skating Jam Named "Saturday", Let Let Me In

6.5/10

Dear Impossible Foggy Demo - Ryan Adams

I would ask what was going on and what I was thinking with this, but at this stage I think my Ryan Adams collection has more bad than good. Especially annoying when you realise half of these could have been if recorded properly.

Highlights: Sunflowers and Rain

4/10

The Death of WCW - Bryan Alvarez

This is an audio book. It is long. It is Bryan Alvarez reading me through the history and rise and fall of WCW. This is a nice timely recap, since I have been taking a break from WCW viewing these past few months and will be returning to it soon. Also, Alvarez is such a great person to listen to; his voice always accurately portrays his complete frustration and dissatisfaction with what he has had to watch.

Highlights: Lessons Not Learned

8/10

"Albums" listened to so far: 399

2025 in 2025: Day 50

Dangerous - Michael Jackson

Jam jam here comes the man! Never have truer words been spoken. MJ albums always open with an awesome song, and this may well be the most awesome. The whole first half is New Jack badassery, before it slows down with Heal the World, which feels a lot like 'We Are The World Part II'. I don't care what anyone says - Black or White is peak pop-rock-funk perfection. Damn Slash's guitar solo on Give In To Me is seriously great. I can totally picture some young MJ fans crying when they first heard his spoken word outro for Will You Be There. MJ fans were insane like kids these days have no idea. I cannot hear Gone Too Soon without thinking of Usher singing it at MJ's memorial... Vocals on Dangerous are awesome. Bah gawd this album is awesome.

Highlights: Jam, Black or White, Keep the Faith

9/10

Dare! - The Human League

This is only the hit song Don't You Want Me. Alexis Sayle throwing this in to his Dr. Martin's song on The Young Ones will always be iconic.

8/10

Dark Horse - George Harrison

Hari's On Tour sounds like it is from some sports program or something, like maybe a cricket show? This album gets a bad rap, but I always find it really consistent and super listenable. The wobble-board thing in It Is "He" is hilariously fun. If his voice had not been so destroyed, I think this album would have been quite different.

Highlights: So Sad, Dark Horse, Far East Man

7.5/10

Darkbreaker (Elizabethtown Sessions) - Ryan Adams

A whole bunch of unfinished songs? I was about to say that this version of Everyone Knows is quite good, but then it all fell apart. Two is not bad, either, though the studio version on Easy Tiger is definitely better. I was concerned that during my Ryan Adams marathon 10 years ago I may have bought in to the hype (and my own obsession with this dude) and pretended this 'album' was great, but NOPE! Even then I knew this was trash.

Highlights: Don't Get Sentimental on Me, Elizabeth

4/10

Darkest Days - Stabbing Westward

The kind of industrial metal that makes you want to dye your hair black, paint your fingernails, turn out the lights and do whatever goths do in the dark. I used to listen to this while playing the original Gran Turismo, so not totally dissimilar? This dude's voice was seriously unbeatable until Taka came along. Thing is, amongst the angry dark heavy goth metal are some fantastic hooks. And that coupled with Christopher Hall's awesome screaming has me sitting here enjoying this album immensely. 

Highlights: You Complete Me, Save Yourself, Sometime It Hurts, Desperate Now, Waking Up Beside You

8/10

David Live - David Bowie

My man Bowie had better performances, but this is still a pretty decent live album. The bluesy version of All The Young Dudes is pretty great. Earl Slick sure likes shredding up a storm all over this show.

Highlights: Moonage Daydream, All the Young Dudes, Big Brother, Time

6.5/10

Day and Age - The Killers

This was when I started losing interest in The Killers. They still had a big stack of goodwill with me for their debut album, but this album is definitely a bit of a drop-off point. Well, mostly the last half - the first half is quite fun, though very different to what they had released up to this point. Brandon Flowers is the opposite of Christopher Hall, in that his voice is weaker and just getting more annoying. And the lyrics are getting pretty naff, as well. Again, it is not all terrible, but this is certainly where they stopped living up to their name.

Highlights: Losing Touch, Human, Spaceman, Goodnight Travel Well

6.5/10

A Day at the Races - Queen

Let's end day 50 with my first proper Queen album! It's fun; some years ago I would have told you this was one of the best albums ever, but then in the lead up to listening now I was convinced it was kind of average (for a Queen album - which is still top tier). But listening now and it just owns. Seriously. It has everything: straight up rock classics (Tie Your Mother Down), beautiful ballads (You Take My Breath Away), poptastic fun (You and I), epic dark stuff (White Man), random Japanese (Teo Torriatte) and some of the best songs in the Queen catalogue (Somebody to Love). Is that solo in Good Old-Fashioned Lover Boy just the funnest? Drowse is the worst Roger Taylor song, but otherwise this album is Queen at their best.

Highlights: All the songs I already mentioned and everything else too

9/10

"Albums" listened to so far: 392

2025 in 2025: Day 49

Cyberpunk - Billy Idol

Vince Neil stole Steve Stevens, so Billy Idol's only answer was to make a weird concept album and fuse his brand of rock with 90s electronica? The dude even decides to do some rapping on here. I'd make fun, but all these fake commercials and news bits feel kind of like he was inspired RoboCop. And Shock to the System is a genuinely brilliant song. There are a couple of other good songs, but mostly this is all very dated and long and kind of silly.

Highlights: Shock to the System, Power Junkie

5/10

Cypress Hill - Cypress Hill

This album doesn't have the glorious production or menacing darkness of Black Sunday. But what it does have is funky grooves and super cool rhymes. Sometimes when a group doesn't have lots of money to hide behind, they are forced to be very good - and Cypress Hill were very good. Probably still are?

Highlights: How I Could Just Kill a Man, Light Another, Real Estate, Stoned is the Way of the Walk, The Funky Cypress Hill Shit

7/10

D.I.S.C.O. - Ottawan

Sadly, this is simply the single song from the French duo. It is a testament to the power and glory of disco music. That intro alone is life.

10/10

Da Real World - Missy Elliott

So we finally made it to the D albums! I loves me some Missy Elliott, but her first couple of albums just kind of meander a little. How did I forget Slim Shady is on here? Man, he was so fun back in the day. A lot of guest appearances on this album. And some preaching from Missy? That's not a fun way to end an album...

Highlights: Busa Rhyme

5/10

Dad Man Cat - Corduroy

One of the grooviest albums of all time. Also coolest song titles of all time, like How to Steal the World, The Girl Who Was Death and Skirt Alert. These cats were the coolest. I still need to split the live tracks from each album and put them on their own - they all come from an actual live album that was released a million years ago, but I do not have.

Highlights: How to Steal the World, Frug in G Major, Pony Tail, Skirt Alert, Money Is

9/10

Daft Punk is Playing at My House [Single] - LCD Soundsystem

It is not that song, because I have that on the self-titled LCD Soundsystem album. This is purely Jump Into the Fire (Radio One Live Sessions). This is so much better than that terrible version I heard a couple of days ago on The Craft soundtrack.

8/10

Dakota [Single] - Stereophonics

Great song, this one. The remix is pretty naff, though. And the other demo song on here is fine.

Highlights: Dakota

6/10

Dance Your Asteroids Off to the Complete Star Wars Collection - Meco

Another Meco compilation, but this time it is purely Star Wars themes. Including the Ewok celebrations from Return of the Jedi. Some of these are edited versions and a whole lot of fake movie dialogue has been edited in. The "Yoda" is hilarious; sounds more like Kurgen from Highlander! Bah gawd Meco has even re-recorded the full Lapti Nek in the corniest way. "C3PO" is rapping in Ewok language about Star Wars characters and this might be the one moment saving the album from being deleted. Jar Jar Binks rapping about himself may be even funnier!

Highlights: Darth Vader's Theme/Yoda's Theme, The Battle in the Snow, Ewok Celebration

7/10

Dancing on the Ceiling - Lionel Richie

This is purely the title track, because it is an 80s dance classic and I will love it forever. The guitar solo is way cooler than it had any right to be.

10/10

Dancing With Myself (From the Motion Picture Mean Girls) [Single] - The Donnas

An awesome cover from an awesome movie. I'm not sure if I love this more than the original, but maybe I do, because The Donnas had such great attitude. I started the day with Billy Idol being weird and ending the day with a cover of one of his best songs. Full circle!

10/10

Danger Days: The True Lives Of The Fabulous Killjoys (Deluxe Version) - My Chemical Romance

These dudes owe their producers at least 80% of everything they ever earned, because they managed to make Gerard Way sound like a great screamo-style singer, when he was in fact just an average bad singer. Also, they can only make 'concept albums'. All that said, this album has some outstanding pop-punk moments. Bulletproof Heart is the most Green Day song this side of Green Day - right down to the title! In fact, I would argue that almost every song on this album sounds like someone else. And of course they have the cliched girl talking in Japanese moment. Anyways, this album is great and there is genuinely not a bad song on it. 

Highlights: Bulletproof Heart, Sing, The Only Hope For Me Is You, Save Yourself I'll Hold Them Back, The Kids From Yesterday

8/10

"Albums" listened to so far: 384

2025 in 2025: Day 48

Cross Road - Bon Jovi

This is purely the songs I don't have on other albums - that being the 2 new songs (Someday I'll Be Saturday Night & Always) and Runaway. Because I am lame and still do not have their debut album. I legit can not explain that in a rational way. Maybe that will be my goal for 2025? Start 2026 by listening to that album?

Highlights: Someday I'll Be Saturday Night, Always, Runaway

8/10

The Crow: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack - Various Artists

A whole lot of dark and brooding alternative songs. Some fairly light industrial fare, as well. But when your soundtrack opens with this kind of song by The Cure, you can not help but win. I wanted to do something with Golgotha Tenement Blues during my video making days. It could have been used so much better in this film. Nine Inch Nails covering Joy Division. Rage Against The Machine with a song that I've heard about 7 different versions of and this one is not my favourite. The singer from Helmet had such a boring voice. I could have sworn there was a Skinny Puppy song on here, but I am not sad that I am wrong. 

Highlights: Burn - The Cure, Golgotha Tenement Blues - Machines of Loving Grace, Slip Slide Melting - For Love Not Lisa, Dead Souls - Nine Inch Nails

6.5/10

The Crow: City of Angels (Soundtrack) - Various Artists

The movie was not as good, but I would argue the soundtrack was better in some ways - or at least the better songs are much better? And some of the songs are much worse. I certainly did not need to hear Bush do anything, let alone cover a Joy Division song badly. Tricky is a weird dude. Knock Me Out is just awesome; Grace Slick and Linda Perry's voices are both so strong and full of emotion, they match perfectly in this song. Deftones sound so old school here, with the boxy guitar tone, Chi shouting in the chorus and Chino kind of semi-rapping. City of Angels sounds like a serious ripoff of Dam It Feels Good to Be a Gangsta. And things end with a glorious Heather Nova performance, which I will always welcome after a bunch of crap alt rock.

Highlights: Knock Me Out - Linda Perry & Grace Slick, Believe in Angels - Heather Nova & Graeme Revell, Teething - Deftones, Jurassitol - Filter

6/10

Crowded House - Crowded House

What a debut album this is. Neil Finn is the greatest songwriter from New Zealand - at least this side of Tim Finn, anyways. I am not even sure Crowded House ever topped this album; it is pure 80s pop rock greatness. It also is not said enough, but all three are/were fantastic musicians in their rights.

Highlights: Mean to Me, Don't Dream it's Over, Something So Strong, I Walk Away

9/10

Crown Royal - Run-D.M.C.

The worst Run-D.M.C. album! D.M.C. appears on a total of... one song? And instead they team up with quality MCs like... Kid Rock and Fred Durst. Need I say more? Well, it is not all bad; the one song that is pure Run-D.M.C. is awesome, as is the collaboration with Stephan Jenkins. Also, Simmons Incorporated is pretty darn great. Oh, D.M.C. is on this one as well - I just forget, because he lays down like 5 lines or something. Quite sad that this was the last album they released. RIP JMJ

Highlights: Simmons Incorporated (w/Method Man), Crown Royal, Rock Show (w/Stephan Jenkins)

6.5/10

Crush - Bon Jovi

Jon Bon Jovi always sounds so corny when he swears in his songs. This is probably the Bon Jovi album that I listen to the least - well, until I got What About Now. This album is not as bad as that, but it is trying. It is just really really mediocre. And I don't think It's My Life is nearly as good as everyone else seems to think it is. 

Highlights: Just Older, Captain Crash & The Beauty Queen from Mars

5/10

CRUSH & BUILD - PSYCHIC LOVER

This is pretty much what I needed after that hour of mediocrity. PSYCHIC LOVER re-recording their 'biggest hits' or whatever they are (they are hits to me!). Somehow these songs sound even more boombastic and highly produced, when I am certain YOFFY just recorded these all at home on his own setup. Then again, they have a full on live band these days - maybe they recorded with them as well? Hard to judge which versions are better, to be honest here, but I certainly do not need English language versions. I often consider YOFFY to be the Japanese Jon Bon Jovi, but after listening to Crush and then this back-to-back, YOFFY is way better. IMAJO is no Richie Sambora, though (they are both awesome in different ways).

Highlights: Everything Except the English Versions

7.5/10

The Cure - The Cure

Man, this morning is too sunny and beautiful for this album! For some reason, I feel like I have already talked about this album. It is like The Cure, if the The Cure were angry and trying to be more metal? But then this is The Cure? The End of the World is like a total pop song, though, so everything I am writing is just proving to be nonsense? The Promise is epic. 

Highlights: Labyrinth, The Promise, The End of the World, Alt. End, Going Nowhere

7/10

Cut The Crap - The Clash

Joe Strummer does 80s pop? Joe Strummer does Garageband? Joe Strummer does a 'WTF am I doing?' Everything sounds so poorly recorded - even for The Clash. And there are just odd noises and samples going on in the background that distract from actual songs. The weird part is, I kind of wish they had just embraced the 80s ska-pop thing 100% and really gone for it, because there are couple of cool songs (or at least songs that have cool elements) that just end up crashing from the poor production and whatnot. Fingerpoppin' is a certified dancehall banger!

Highlights: Fingerpoppin', North and South

4.5/10

Cuts Like a Knife - Bryan Adams

I think this was BA's first really good album; You Want It, You Got It was fine, but Cuts Like a Knife is more polished and the songs are stronger, more consistent. I think maybe this was the first album Keith Scott joined the team? That would all tie in nicely; his guitar playing really adds something to what Bryan Adams brings to the table. As does whoever is playing these organ/keyboard parts. I could imagine Kiss doing I'm Ready - maybe not for Creatures of the Night, but definitely on Unmasked. 

Highlights: The Only One, Cuts Like a Knife, What's It Gonna Be, Take Me Back, This Time, I'm Ready

8/10

"Albums" listened to so far: 373

2025 in 2025: Day 47

The Craft: Music from the Motion Picture - Various Artists

This is a whole bunch of 90s artists covering a bunch of 'classic' songs. Luckily for me, this includes a few of my favourite artists! We get Our Lady Peace doing a fairly standard remake of The Beatles' epic Tomorrow Never Knows, Letters to Cleo doing a song by The Cars, and then crap like Tripping Daisy completely ruining Jump Into the Fire. Bah gawd the LCD Soundsystem cover is a million times better, as is the original. But the real highlights are Heather Nova covering Peter Gabriel's I Have the Touch and some band called Love Spit Love performing the theme from Charmed! Yes, that is how I best knew the song and this version; it wasn't until many years later that someone told me it was actually a song by The Smiths. I like this version. I like Charmed. I have been meaning to watch that again - I never actually watched seasons 7 and 8...

Highlights: I Have the Touch - Heather Nova, How Soon Is Now? - Love Spit Love, Tomorrow Never Knows - Our Lady Peace

6/10

Crazy in Love - ITZY

This may be the most inconsistent ITZY release; there are some killer songs - and some that are right up there with the best of their songs - but there are also some of their worst songs on here. Or at least one bad song and a few weak ones. But yeah, those good songs are awesome. LOVE is a perfect ballad and Chillin' Chillin' is the most fun you can have - and hilariously both songs are exactly 3:30. Fun!

Highlights: LOCO, Sooo LUCKY, LOVE is, Chillin' Chillin'

7/10

Crazy Nights - Kiss

I'm not sure I need to write about this again? Maybe I do? Crazy Crazy Nights always hits hard. This album is just 80s good fun and makes me want to get a hot chocolate. It's cold, okay?

Highlights: Crazy Crazy Nights, Reason to Live, Turn on the Night

8/10

Crazy World - Scorpions

This is only the song Wind of Change. It is probably the only Scorpions song I have ever heard. Maybe I should hear more someday...

8/10

Creatures of the Night (40th Anniversary Super Deluxe Edition) - Kiss

This is two discs of demos and rarities from the Creatures of the Night sessions. Because listening to a bunch of Kiss demos has always worked out so well for me... but actually, these are not so bad. Things kick off with the *exclusive* tracks from Killers. I like them more than I apparently did during Kissathon II. Then it is demos for a song from Lick It Up, a song Peter Criss recorded on Let Me Rock You, the songs that appeared earlier/on Killers, a bunch of Gene's solo nonsense, a couple of songs recorded during the making of The Elder? And a Bryan Adams song. So anything BUT a song that actually was recorded for Creatures of the Night. I would actually complain, but I'll damned if the demo for Not For the Innocent isn't a million times better than how it actually ended up on Lick It Up; Paul singing the chorus is soooo much better! Also, It's My Life is here in demo form. And that song is awesome. Even without Ace doing some vocals. So this is not a total loss, although Chrome Goes Into Motion does sound legit like Spinal Tap. Then we are on to outtakes? So actual Creatures of the Night songs. Mostly. And mostly pointless. Unless you want to hear some bad guitar playing while Paul fumbles his way through I Still Love You a couple of times. At least the drums in the Saint And Sinner outtakes are massive. Gene's mouth-guitar solos are kind of fun, too. 

Highlights: Rock and Roll Hell [Take 2], I'm a Legend Tonight, Nowhere to Run, Not for the Innocent [Demo], It's My Life [Demo]

6.5/10

Creatures of the Night (1985 Remix) - Kiss

Ha! The last track on the Creatures of the Night (40th Anniversary Super Deluxe Edition) was the 1985 remix of Creatures of the Night. The first track on this album is the same song. So between the outtakes and then having this song repeated, I'm a little over this already. I wrote about this version of the album before and I stand by what I said. I definitely prefer this tracklisting. One day I might remove this album and just rework the tracklisting of the 'proper' version. One day...

Highlights: The better tracklisting

8/10

Creatures of the Night (Remaster) - Kiss

There was a noticeable volume jump to this from the 1985 remix, so I moved to turn it down. But then I decided I've been listening to this album for a while now and I want to hear it loud. It is much better. Also, the original mix is better than the 1985 mix. 

Highlights: Keep Me Comin', Rock and Roll Hell, I Love it Loud

9/10

Criss (Special Limited Edition EP) - Peter Criss

The Cat is a pretty fun song. The nursery rhymes are odd and mocking Gene and Paul always wins points with me. Did he end it with him hissing at people or something? This dude singing on Show Me is okay, I guess. He made a Queen reference, I think, so he also wins points with me. I seem to like him more than I did during Kissathon II. Like might not be the right word, but I was certainly harsh then.

Highlights: The Cat, Beth (Acoustic)

6.5/10

Criss Cat #1 - Peter Criss

Oh, that album title is not correct. This has been a fairly Kiss heavy day, which is at least proving easy for me to write about! Blue Moon Over Brooklyn is nowhere near as bad as I wrote initially. Or maybe it is just relative to how awful Peter Criss got later in his career? I also wrote that Down with the Sun is an instrumental? There are a lot of vocals - perhaps I was just referring to the music side of the song? Because the outro section is really good. Genuinely solid album!
Highlights: Bad Attitude, Walk the Line, Good Times, Down with the Sun

7/10

"Albums" listened to so far: 363

2025 in 2025: Day 46

Cosas Del Amor - Enrique Iglesias

How about we start the day with some beautiful Spanish crooning from Rogan Rodriguez's best friend and the hottest man in 90s pop? Okay, if you insist! Normally, I would prefer Enrique being the party man and pumping out something with a big beat and lots of fun. Most times it seems to include Pitbull, for some reason (I'm guessing Pitbull doesn't have much going on and just begs to be involved, because he wants to be friends with Rogan Rodriguez as well). But this album is mostly ballad after ballad, and they are mostly very good! And then there is one fun song in Para De Jugar, which also features some lady singing in English - they couldn't find someone that can speak Spanish? Or teach this women a few words in Spanish? Selfish cow.

Highlights: Cosas Del Amor, Para De Jugar, Desnudo, Sirena

8/10

The Cosmic Game - Thievery Corporation

Super chill lo-fi UK-influenced garage electronica. Good grooves on a cold morning like this. Even features some more Spanish singing. But it isn't Enrique Iglesias. They should have hired Enrique Iglesias.

Highlights: Warning Shots, Pela Janela, Sol Tapado, Holographic Universe

6.5/10

Cosmic Thing - The B-52's

Sometimes the retro fun of The B-52's - with lines about putting your caboose on the President's desk - is super... fun. But, I have to be honest; Bon Jovi did Dry County much betterer. Overall just a fun pop album. Fred is a super cool dude.

Highlights: Love Shack, Roam, Cosmic Thing, Junebug

7.5/10

The Cosmos Rocks - Queen + Paul Rodgers

Queen! Well, only half of them, really... but I will take it. Brian May using a wah pedal? That doesn't happen often. This one feels a lot more like old white man blues rock at times, which is acceptable given they are old British white dudes. They can still pump out a killer rock ballad better than anyone in the business, that's for sure. We Believe could easily just be too cheesy, but something about Rodgers' delivery makes it work. And that guitar solo. Some of the heavier stuff on here doesn't really do it for me, but overall this is a pretty decent release and it is a shame they haven't released anything since.

Highlights: Cosmos Rockin', Small, We Believe, Say It's Not True, Small reprise

7.5/10

COUNTDOWN LIVE 2019-2020 ～Promised Land～ A - Ayumi Hamasaki

The title says it all. Personally, I was not that impressed with this concert; I do not support Ayu doing concerts using only backing tracks, particularly in a large arena like this. She should always use a full live band. And this was the period where it had become the Ayu & Timmy show - that dude really tried to take over and make things about him as much as possible. It also does not help that she opens with one of my least favourite Ayu songs. And her voice sounds shot by the second song. In fairness to my Empress, this was only a few months after giving birth to her first child, so I will let it slide. 

Highlights: UNITE!, sending mail, evolution

6/10

Country Grammar - Nelly

Nelly + Ced The Entertainer were a great combo - his albums all went downhill once they stopped collaborating. And was this when every rapper had a crew like they were Wu Tang Clan? Like, Nelly out here on his debut album promoting his crew all over the place, like he and them matter to everyone. Save that nonsense for when you've been around a few years and had a bunch of hits. Which he did with this album. So yeah, it will be fine when he does it on the next album.

Highlights: Ride With Me, E.I, Tho Dem Wrappas, Luven Me

7.5/10

Cowboy Technical Sessions - Ryan Adams

Some old DRA demos? Only one of these ended up on anything later, though I would have liked to hear another version of Ghost. Liar is like L7 meets Nirvana kind of punk.

Highlights: Ghost, My Love For You Is Real

7/10

Cradle 2 the Grave (Soundtrack) - Various Artists

The best Jet Li and DMX movie boasts the hardest hip-hop soundtrack to a Jet Li movie. If X Gon' Give it to Ya doesn't get you going, then you might be dead. I'm not sure what someone would have to do to invoke the wrath of not just Obie Trice, but also Eminem AND DMX. They are three angry men. Is Stompdashitoutu the best song title ever? Certainly is a helluva hook. DMX turning into a preacher was very unexpected. A bunch of rappers I had never heard of before this album - or after - but some killer tracks up in herre!

Highlights: X Gon' Give it to Ya - DMX, Go to Sleep - DMX & Eminem & Obie Trice, Right/Wrong - DMX, Getting Down - DMX & Big Stan

7/10

"Albums" listened to so far: 354

2025 in 2025: Day 45

The Concert for Bangladesh - George Harrison and Friends

Starting my day with a 17 minute Indian stringed-instrument performance. I guess that is one way to ease in to a morning - but it does suit my mood, as I slept later and am taking my time getting my head together. But after that we are in for some good old-fashioned rock'n roll! And seriously, what a killer lineup these concerts had. I enjoy that Ringo forgets half the lyrics to his song. I also enjoy that Leon Russell was just a darn charismatic enigma in this show. He already looked like he was a fifty year-old rocker that had lived a hard life and sang like a man that had been playing in boozy smoke-filled clubs all his life - and he wasn't even thirty yet! Bangla Desh is the best performance of the night, for sure. I hope one day we can get a remix of this album the way they are doing other Beatle's-related albums, because I am sure it can sound better.

Highlights: Just Like a Woman - Bob Dylan, Bangla Desh - George Harrison, Jumpin' Jack Flash/Young Blood - Leon Russell

7.5/10

CONQUEROR - BAND-MAID

Oh my, I had almost forgotten about these young women! This album is not as consistently awesome as World Domination, but it has some fantastic shining moments. Some of these songs are like a better My Chemical Romance. A MUCH betterer My Chemical Romance. I need to check out what they have released since this album and see how good it is. No idea why I stopped listening to them. The drumming on this album is massive and I really dig the timing changes in songs like Bubble. Wow, I can't believe I have to wait another nine months until I get to listen to World Domination...

Highlights: endless story, カタルシス, PAGE

7/10

Conspiracy of One - The Offspring

Original Prankster is more of the same garbage these guys had been releasing with their last album, but then they followed up with Want You Bad - which may be one of their greatest songs ever? The rest is pretty standard fare from The Offspring; nothing terrible, nothing too exciting.

Highlights: Want You Bad, Million Miles Away, Living In Chaos

6/10

Conti Ukiss - U-Kiss

This is just one song and I need to shazam it, because the title is a mess of jibberish. But it is a pretty cool song.

7/10

The Cookbook - Missy Elliot

This is big change of pace. At the time, I rated this album VERY highly. Time hasn't been as kind to it; there are still a bunch of awesome songs, but it just feels like most of the tracks are missing a little something. Missy's rhymes are always awesome, though.

Highlights: Lose Control, Can't Stop, Teary Eyed, Meltdown, Time & Time Again

7/10

Cool as Ice - Various Artists

This is the soundtrack to that cinema epic, starring Vanilla Ice. Great stuff. This is very standard 1991 R'n B type of music. So, Partners in Kryme actually did have another song? I refuse to believe they were a real group. Vanilla Ice really uses these songs to showcase his incredible rapping and rhyming skills. And his softer side for the ladies, thanks to Never Wanna Be Without You - which may well be the funniest ballad ever created. Forever by D'New sounds like 3 people playing keyboard, but can't hear the other 2 people playing. And then someone next door is practicing the saxamophone. And nothing says '1991 movie soundtrack' like an instrumental with dialogue from the movie overtop. Vanilla Ice's parting message on this album is he is not down with... peace??

Highlights: Cool As Ice, The People's Choice, Get Wit' It - Vanilla Ice, You've Got to Look Up - DeREK B, Drop That Zero - Stanley Clarke

6/10

Core - Stone Temple Pilots

I like to pretend that this is not the best album by Stone Temple Pilots, because I like to think Tiny Music is. And I'm right. But, also, this album is, too. Because holy balls does it slam! Weiland's lyrics are all political poetic and his vocals are both powerful and vulnerable, the guitar riffs are massive and with thick distortion, the bass lines are grooving everywhere and the drums are rock solid. There's even a Metallica-sounding instrumental in here. And then these guys refused to ever sound like this again! That was also not a bad thing, because they made great music after this, but this album just feels like peak grunge.

Highlights: Sex Type Thing, Piece of Pie, Plush, Dead & Bloated

8/10

"Albums" listened to so far: 346

2025 in 2025: Day 44

The Complete Elvis Presley Masters: Alternate Masters - Elvis Presley
Just when you thought Elvis had left the building...
Not sure what happened here that these were split, when the others weren't. Also, I had changed the title, but must have missed some sorting option or something, because I expected this in another couple of months. So back to 50s Elvis we go! These are all slightly different to the main versions that I am used to. Then we get movie versions of a bunch of movie songs that had different performances in the movies. I'm making sense! The alternative song called Roustabout is better than the one they ended up using (I'm a Roustabout). I dig the slide guitar in Amazing Grace. After a groovy version of She Thinks I Still Care, we are off to some rehearsals and private recordings. Some of these sound like he is just jamming at home with Charlie Hodge. These jams from the That's The Way It Is rehearsals are a big barrel of fun. And Elvis giving a solo acoustic performance of I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry is the best I have ever heard this song. 
Highlights: One Broken Heart For Sale (Movie Version), It Hurts Me
7/10

Complete Fucker Demos - Whiskeytown
And there I was trying to keep the swearing out of this bLogging... These sound a lot more polished than demos. And are way more rocking than I was expecting; I thought this was going to be some chill alt. country-styled jams, and instead this is 90s college radio rock. Nice to hear Ryan Adams when he sang great! Ah ok, about halfway through it turns in to more what I expected. And then back again? I guess it is a collection of demos or whatever, so the different styles kind of makes sense. Either way, this is good.
Highlights: Win, Comfortable Only at Night, Leave the Lights Off, Tearing Me Up Inside, Breathe
7/10

The Complete James Brown Christmas - James Brown
Bah gawd, I really chose the wrong time of year to do this! This is certainly a different Xmas experience; he isn't just singing the usual Xmas standards or anything - this is all James Brown making soul music and throwing in Xmas lyrics. And typical James Brown instrumental jams? Including one called Believers Shall Enjoy (Non-Believers Shall Suffer). That doesn't exactly sound like the Xmas spirit. Then again, he also spends one 'Xmas song' thanking the listener for coming to his shows. Say It Loud (I'm Black and I'm Proud) is included in here? I guess listening to that makes me happier than a kid at Xmas?
Highlights: Santa Claus Go Straight to the Ghetto, Soulful Christmas, Tit for Tat (Ain't No Taking Back), Go Power at Christmas Time, You Know It, Believers Shall Enjoy (Non Believers Shall Suffer), Say It Loud (I'm Black and I'm Proud) Pt. 1 & 2
6.5/10

The Complete Million Dollar Quartet - Elvis Presley
I guess I haven't listened to enough Elvis lately? I am still not convinced this really is all four of them; Johnny Cash is nowhere to be heard (vocally) and Elvis kind of comes and goes. And of course they kind of start with some Xmas songs... The highlight of this recording is Elvis giving a review of the Elvis impersonator at the Fats Domino show he went to. And 'Killer' showing how he got that nickname. I do wish they had known what they were doing with Brown Eyed Handsome Man - I'm sure that would have been great if they could have remembered the words. The gospel jams are seriously fantastic. It all runs out of steam after Elvis tries to sell them all on That's When Your Heartaches Begin (which kind of proves Cash is not there, because his baritone voice would be perfect for that song), but it is an enjoyable listen that clearly I ignore way too often!
Highlights: There's No Place Like Home, When the Saints Go Marchin' In, Just a Little Talk With Jesus, Jesus Walked That Lonesome Valley, I Shall Not Be Moved, End of the Road
6/10

Concert: The Cure Live - The Cure
This is one of those live albums where some of the songs are inferior to the studio versions, but then some are actually a little bit cooler or have more attitude or something. Early 80s The Cure was so atmospheric and the drums always sounded very lo-fi, so live everything gives the songs a lot more energy. But then the studio versions have a lot more going on vocally, which is sometimes missing live. The saxamophone on Give Me It sounds like a goose strangling Bobcat Goldthwaite. I think I prefer this version of 10:15 Saturday Night. This is also the only copy of Killing an Arab that I have, since Robert Smith seems intent on erasing it from existence.
Highlights: Charlotte Sometimes, A Forest, 10:15 Saturday Night, Killing an Arab
7.5/10

"Albums" listened to so far: 339

2025 in 2025: Day 43

The Complete Elvis Presley Masters - Elvis Presley

1967 to 1977

Clambake... yeah... these songs are... songs? Maybe? Confidence is just bad, I can't even pretend anything else. The soundtrack for Speedway is better. Marginally. Crazy that someone heard this version of Guitar Man and thought 'this needs to be the central song to the 68 special!'; it isn't bad, but it certainly doesn't match the version recorded for the '68 Comeback Special. Anyways, I think we are done with soundtracks now. I have a few different versions of Elvis doing Too Much Monkey Business - they all are quite different - and this version has some pretty funky acoustic guitar and really subtle drums. It's pretty groovy. Clean Up Your Own Back Yard is about people being hypocrites telling other people how to live when they are doing the bad things - the irony of The King singing that is not lost on me. We hit 1969 for the brief tracks on here; I have these in some form as part of the From Elvis in Memphis reissue, but they are the mono masters there and I should have full stereo versions of Suspicious Minds and Kentucky Rain at all times. Strangely, I never got around to getting the On Stage reissue, so that pops in here. I can always take some 1970 live Elvis in Vegas fun. Interesting they abandoned the chronological order for the recording date and put this album in original tracklisting instead. I have not really listened to this album much, but I do enjoy that some of the songs have quite slower tempos to how they were performed on That's The Way It Is. I am yet to pick up the From Elvis in Nashville box set (despite having the follow up set, Back in Nashville), so from here we move on to the legendary first Nashville sessions. Well, except for the gospel recordings (I have those in a separate set as well). I'm not as in love with these as Elvis world would demand I be; they're okay, but mostly very country and I'm not the biggest country fan. It's fine, but I prefer rockin' Elvis. Or just straight up ballad Elvis. Or gospel Elvis. Huh, I guess I didn't remove the Back in Nashville tracks, because I am now Back in Nashville? Perhaps because these are the original masters and that set is all the overdubs removed. Interesting. I should put them on back to back and see which I prefer. But not right now, I still have about 20,000 other songs to listen to... like Elvis singing Christmas songs. The cowbell in Burning Love is life. I've finally made it to 1976, when Elvis is far from his physical peak. But his voice is more powerful than ever. I love the massive harmonies in Bitter They Are, Harder They Fall. This is a reminder I need to get that Jungle Room compilation so I can separate out all his final recordings and enjoy those outtakes as well. FUN FACT: the final live masters were recorded on my birthday... just 3 years before I was born. And because nothing is ever easy with me, these are all followed by bonus live masters. I'm guessing these weren't included in the main section because they are rarites than anything; some are poor quality (and I'm pretty sure a few of them are in the Boy From Tupelo set), some are different renditions not found elsewhere, and then there is the "laughing version" of Are You Lonesome Tonight, in which Elvis just breaks in to hysterics and derails the entire performance. I love that for him. The overdubbed version of Unchained Melody is certainly much cheesier than the original performance found on the main set (and recorded as a pre-birthday present to me!).

Highlights: Suspicious Minds, Kentucky Rain, Walk A Mile in My Shoes, Just Pretend, You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling, Where Did They Go Lord, Whole Lot-ta Shakin' Goin' On, Burning Love, Always On My Mind, Way Down

"Albums" listened to so far: 334

2025 in 2025: Day 42

The Complete Elvis Presley Masters - Elvis Presley

1961 to 1966

Fun fact: the first 12 songs I am listening to from 1961 (mostly used for the Something for Everybody album) were recorded 64 years ago today! And then it is on to the songs recorded for Blue Hawaii. They are mostly as lame as the movie. Things start to get jumbled up from here, so I might stop talking about what they were recorded for. But needless to say, the songs not recorded for the movies are generally better than the ones that were. That is not to say that all the soundtrack songs were awful; I actually dig the songs for Follow That Dream - and the movie itself. It is hilarious; Elvis plays a complete simpleton and appears to be having a fun time. I'm surprised Elvis hasn't been cancelled for Plantation Rock. And many other things. It Happened at the World's Fair is another one of my favourite Elvis movies - hilarious movie. And a couple of great songs on the soundtrack. Only a couple. One Broken Heart For Sale is actually an awesome song. Who makes a song called Mexico and never once mentions Lucha Libre? 1963 was generally a pretty decent year for The King; some fun singles like Bossa Nova Baby, You're the Devil in Disguise and What'd I Say, and the soundtracks ranged from harmless (Fun in Acapulco) to iconic (Viva Las Vegas). "The eyes of Texas are upon you and you can not get away" is gawdam frightening! I've changed my mind: Barefoot Ballad is genuinely the worst Elvis song on the planet. Or any other planet, ever. Kissin' Cousins is disturbing enough, but Kissin Cousins #2 is even weirder, with lines like "Kissin's allowed because we're proud". Yikes! In 1964 we get It Hurts Me and Little Egypt - both re-recorded and improved greatly for the '68 Comeback Special - and then just 2 soundtracks? I liked Girl Happy, but can barely remember Roustabout. Oh, Do The Clam was also 1964. What an odd single/idea/song/everything. 1965 is simply just soundtracks again; I recall Harum Scarum wasn't as bad a movie as I was led to believe. The soundtrack, however, is very blah. The Frankie and Johnny soundtrack feels more 'big band' style than anything else Elvis has done. It's mostly fine. Spinout may well be my fav Elvis movie soundtrack. But again, I don't really remember the movie, even though I know I have seen it a few times. Might have to watch it again soon. Tomorrow is a Long Time is the longest song by Elvis by far! Until now, very few songs even made it past the 3-minute mark, but this one is 5 1/2 minutes long! Huh, I always thought Love Letters was a 70s song, but here it is in 1966 exactly where it has always been. The soundtrack for Double Trouble is also not bad. I just realised that, of course, I removed all the gospel songs and half the singles from the 60s - since I have them elsewhere - so this 60s section really is about 95% songs from the movies. Which is really making me want to watch all of Elvis' movies again. The songs from Easy Come, Easy Go are pretty funny; lots of love machine talk and ridiculous explanations of yoga. 

Highlights: One Broken Heart for Sale, Return to Sender, Viva Las Vegas, What'd I Say, Kiss Me Quick, Suspicion, It Hurts Me, Little Egypt, Girl Happy

6/10

2025 in 2025: Day 41

The Complete Elvis Presley Masters - Elvis Presley

1957 to 1960

So, this isn't complete any longer; I have removed anything that I have on an actual album or box set. Because trying to search through 800 songs to find something is just impossible, and in those cases I am completely used to the album running order. So I have whittled this down to 488 by also removing the 'Alternate Masters' discs and giving them their own 'album'. So anyways... 1957 was a good year for The King. He recorded a lot of very good songs. It is odd that we haven't had any sort of specific collection for these - it is only 1957 and 1958 from the 50s that aren't on some sort of modern set. I could probably move out these Xmas songs to their own collection at some point, which would make a lot of sense; then I could easily crank up some Elvis on Xmas day each year. After Kiss. And James Brown. Between this and the '68 Comeback Special yesterday, you would think I have heard One Night and Trouble plenty enough for now, but listening to the original studio recordings here is like listening to them fresh. The whole King Creole soundtrack is awesome - one of Elvis' finest performances on film, as well. I absolutely love that main guitar riff on (Now And Then There's) A Fool Such As I - one of those riffs where I just have to pick up a guitar and jam along. Once returning from the army, he certainly had a bit of a different sound; gone is that reckless fire and a young rebel, and instead things are a lot tamer and much more pop. But it still mostly has a great groove and his voice is quite improved. Then we hit the soundtrack for G.I. Blues and it all immediately goes downhill; these songs are so uninspired and just cringe. Except for Tonight's All Right For Love - I like that song a lot! The rest of 1960 is a mix of movie songs and random tracks. None of them are particularly interesting. The movie songs work in the movies (and LOGMAN sure does love him some Elvis movies), but they are not anything special on their own. 

Highlights: Got a Lot O' Livin' to Do, All Shook Up, I Beg of You, One Night, Jailhouse Rock, You're So Square (Baby I Don't Care), Santa Claus is Back in Town, Trouble, I Need Your Love Tonight, A Big Hunk O' Love, (Now And Then There's) A Fool Such As I, I Got Stung

7/10

2025 in 2025: Day 40

COMINATCHA!! - WANIMA

These guys are another one of those 'every song sounds the same' kind of band. And that rules, because this album is awesome. Big rowdy summer fun punk and ska good times in every song. Except for the one ballad on each album - which is also fantastic. 

Highlights: 夏のどこかへ, GONG, りんどう, Like a Fire

8/10

commune - YUKI

This is YUKI's second album and she is still in her post-grunge post-punk Beatles groove. It just isn't as strong as her debut album. Nothing outstanding or all that memorable, but definitely nothing bad.

Highlights: ハミングバード, ファンキー・フルーツ

6/10

The Complete '68 Comeback Special: The 40th Anniversary Edition - Elvis Presley

It is day 40 and we celebrate the 40th Anniversary of the greatest television special recorded! I like the way that worked out. Even funnier knowing that I also have the 50th Anniversary Edition, but never bothered to import the extra disc that it contains. Because LOGMAN is a dork, sometimes. So this first disc is mostly just the original album. Which is the weakest part of the set; the mixes are kinda meh and there is crowd noise edited in between all the songs. Which just makes If I Can Dream sound super cheesy. Despite my complaints, it is still great a great album (especially the Gospel medley) and then it has some bonus tracks that are awesome; this version of It Hurts Me is powerful and I still can not understand why that segment has been cut from the home video version of the special. Let Yourself Go and A Little Less Conversation are super great songs. I really did not need another version of Memories - it is one of the worst songs Elvis recorded and a terrible sign of what was to come in the future. It is followed by the definitive version of the greatest song Elvis recorded. Elvis was all about peaks and valleys. Then we move on to Disc 2, which is the first of the 'Sit-Down' and 'Stand-Up' shows. I really enjoy the loose nature of the sit-down shows; it really just feels like a group of dudes jamming at home and reminiscing about about their younger days. Elvis was only 33 here, but had been in the business 13 years already! And Elvis clearly starts to really enjoy himself by the end of it. The 'Stand-Up' show is a different beast; big orchestra arrangements on all the old songs, Elvis all alone singing to backing tracks. I actually dig the arrangements on the 50s songs, but Elvis is clearly struggling to keep up on songs like Jailhouse Rock and he messes up hilariously in Blue Suede Shoes. The second 'Sit-Down' show is more of the same; feeling a bit more comfortable now, the guys just repeat some of the jokes that worked for the first crowd, Elvis messes up more songs and gets more unprofessional in the way only Elvis could get away with. The second 'Stand-Up' show is probably the stronger of the stand-up shows, if only slightly, as Elvis just continues to get more comfortable and just powers through the whole thing quickly, before reluctantly recording the Trouble/Guitar Man medley and then lip-sync to If I Can Dream. I'm very glad they never bothered using that in the final version of the special. And then, we are on to disc four; this is rehearsals, so not in exactly the best sound quality, but there a whole bunch of songs that they did not perform for the special. And the most interesting part is all the banter and just general tomfoolery of Elvis and his crew.

That's a big wall of text...

Highlights: Medley: Where Could I Go But To The Lord/Up Above My Head/Saved, If I Can Dream, It Hurts Me, That's All Right (First 'SIT-DOWN' show), Trying To Get To You (First 'SIT-DOWN' show), Don't Be Cruel (First 'STAND-UP' show), That's All Right (Second 'SIT-DOWN' show), Don't Be Cruel (Second 'STAND-UP' show)

8/10

"Albums" listened to so far: 333

2025 in 2025: Day 39

The College Dropout - Kanye West

I haven't listened to this in forever and I forgot how much Kanye thought he was some sort of prophet or something; this album is all about his love for Jesus and how he is here to preach to us all about Jesus. But also preach to us about how awesome he is, so that should have been a warning right there. I also forgot that Kanye was always a dirty dude. Song-wise, I think this might be his most accessible album? Most consistent? Feels like there are skits between every song, though. The dude stumbling over his lines in the School Spirit skit is hilarious. And what is up with the censoring on this album? One minute a word is fine, but in the next song, that same word is not allowed? I have no hesitation saying Two Words is the best song Kanye has ever done. I seem to have a lot of songs where Freeway appears and kicks some butt.

Highlights: Never Let Me Down, Two Words, School Spirit

8/10

Collision Course - Jay-Z & Linkin Park

Is this the greatest mash-up album of all time? Mike Shinoda genuinely seems like the coolest dude and the fact he put this together is proof. The Jigga What/Faint transition is totally smooth. The funniest part of the making of to me was Jay-Z telling Chester Bennington to just be himself, and then during the live performance Chester is trying to act all hip-hop and it just comes across as incredibly cringe and try-hard. Dude should have listened Jay-Z and maybe he wouldn't have killed himself. 

Highlights: Dirt Off Your Shoulder/Lying from You, Numb/Encore

9/10

COLORFUL POP - E-Girls

I picked this up for as cheap as I could find, purely for the song A S A P; it is used as the ending song for possibly the funniest movie I have ever seen, and it is so fun there I needed it in my collection. The rest of the album is just... somewhat disposable? There is a Bananarama cover, so that's something...

Highlights: A S A P, I'm sure I liked this album more when I first got it?

5.5/10

colors - mol-74

This is some super chill indie pop rock. Very lo-fi, very easy to listen to. Not really much else going on?

Highlights: yellow, fears

7/10

Colours - Ayumi Hamasaki

Ayu spells words correctly! I genuinely love this album; it's just about as dancey and poppy as Ayu could possibly be. No interludes. Just 10 tracks of great music. The extreme EDM parts make me think this is what she really wanted for Party Queen, but I don't know. But I do know that Pray is one of her greatest ballads. 

Highlights: Pray, NOW & 4EVA, XOXO, Terminal

8/10

Combat Rock - The Clash

This album is so far removed from where The Clash started, I can't even begin to explain it properly. One of the most interesting aspects to them as a band, to me, is how much they deviated from the normal 'punk rock' style once they got big; they could have easily kept doing the same sort of music, but instead they veered off and just soaked up inspiration from everywhere. All while still expressing the same anti-authority left-wing punk ideologies in their lyrics. Musically, this album doesn't do a lot for me, but I respect what they were doing.

Highlights: Should I Stay or Should I Go?, Rock The Casbah, Overpowered By Funk

6/10

Come And See - Manbreak

Late 90s UK white dudes thinking they are hard rap-rock gangsters. Something like that, anyways. You would think with a comment like that I think this is lame, but no - I actually dig this album, it is just fun to make fun of that whole Britpop scene. In fact, it might be the weather or the fact I just had a nice strong cacao + matcha drink, but this album is exponentially better than I remembered. Clearly I should listen to this a lot more.

Highlights: Morning, News of the World, Round and Round, Cut Ups

7/10

COME BACK TO 19 - The Tomboys

Huh, I just found that The Tomboys split about 6 months ago. That's a shame, but they had been together for like 11 years, so it happens. This is probably their catchiest collection of tunes. It's the shortest, that is certain. 

Highlights: Please Remember Me, Dream Box, Theme of THE TOMBOYS

7/10

Come Pick Me Up (alternate take) - Ryan Adams

I think this was some RSD release, that then got released on iTunes. It is two songs in vastly inferior versions - including the cliched punk ending to Come Pick Me Up. I'm fairly sick of that song, anyways, so this does nothing for me. I would prefer more Tomboys fun...

Highlights: it was short

4/10

Come With Us - The Chemical Brothers

Now these are songs I could never get sick of! I actually used the name Star Guitar for any electronic music I made - which was mostly remixes of my own music. I know nothing about making good electronic music. Luckily, The Chemical Brothers know all about making good electronic music. And this album is 10 tracks of the finest electronic music possible. There are some hard-hitting house style beats and some glorious chillout jams and it is all so sooo good. I know it is a DJ thing, but I have always loved the way these dudes transition so seamlessly to each new track. Shout out to Richard Ashcroft for keeping the Britpop connection alive and delivering the coolest vocals.

Highlights: Galaxy Bounce, The Test, My Elastic Eye, Star Guitar

9/10

"Albums" listened to so far: 330

2025 in 2025: Day 38

Cold Roses - Ryan Adams and The Cardinals

I want to say bad things about this album. I really do. But it still holds up as an awesome piece of work. From song one, this album is brilliant. And by the time I reach simply the ending of Cherry Lane (which is amazing), I am once again convinced this album is very very good. Certainly a high point of The Cardinals - it was their first album and they never topped it. Heck, I'm not sure they did anything that even came close to matching it. 

Highlights: Meadowlake Street, Let It Ride, If I Am a Stranger, Life is Beautiful

9/10

Cold Roses Rarities - Ryan Adams and The Cardinals

I checked my marathon notes and was surprised at how little I wrote about Cold Roses. And I stand by what I wrote about these songs; they really sound like they have zero to do with that album and are mostly not good.

Highlights: Nope

5/10

Cold Spring Harbor - Billy Joel

Dude is doing his best Paul McCartney impersonation throughout this album; then I realise it was recorded and released in 1971, so The Beatles being a massive influence is not really a surprise. This is mostly acoustic; simply Billy Joel singing while accompanied on piano or guitar, though a few songs have some overdubs and whatnot. Overall, it makes for a very simple and relaxed debut album that is not too dissimilar in parts to Elton John's 70s work.

Highlights: You Can Make Me Free, Turn Around

6/10

Collected Works 1962-1990 - George Harrison

I really need to clean this up; I'm certain I have 95% of these songs elsewhere and in better quality, so not sure why I still have it. It would have saved me about 5 hours of listening time today! That said, going chronologically through the career of George Harrison is a pretty decent way to spend 5 hours... I'm curious as to what some of these sources were, because some have different lead ins and It's All Too Much has a very extended outro. Ditto for Something. And then they end super abruptly. I am now convinced Blue Jay Way could have been a much better song. "Without going out of my door/I can know all things of Earth" - George predicting the internet in 1968. Once The Beatles meet their end, it's on to an endless supply of demos - including some jamming with Bob Dylan! That demo of Dark Horse sure gives a good idea of how the song/album could have sounded if George had stayed healthy. And once we hit the 80s, there seem to be a bunch of songs that I am actually not all that familiar with?!? Like, are these b-sides or outtakes or something? And we finish things off with the extended Traveling Wilburys singles. Some neat little surprises on here!

Highlights: Dehra Dun, Dark Horse (Demo), Flying Hour, Lay His Head, Sat Singing, Cheer Down [Because these are all rarities]

7/10

A Collection - Third Eye Blind

This is not the actual album they released, merely a collection of their b-sides/rarities that I collected and then threw under that album title to keep them in one nice place. And it only covers 1997 to around 2005? Well, that was peak 3eb, so that makes sense. Because these songs are all awesome; fun punk rock, good upbeat pop rock, stupid immature Xmas songs, ridiculous sad songs. These cover all the Third Eye Blind genres.

Highlights: New Girl, Christmas Reincarnated, Persephone, Eye Conqueror

8/10

The Collection - Alanis Morissette

As you can expect about now, this is only the songs that aren't on an actual album. Which is not many. Quality over quantity, mofos! Still is about as awesome as Alanis gets this side of Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie. I have no idea where this live version of Dear Prudence came from. Did I just get obsessed with the song so much that I looked up live versions by my favourite artists? It is underwhelming - particularly after the supreme awesome that is Uninvited.

Highlights: Still, Uninvited

9/10

'Albums' listened to so far: 320

2025 in 2025: Day 37

Christmas Apocalypse (Part 2) - The Shit

Christmas has come early in the house of LOGMAN! This is possibly my 2nd fav The Shit album. I had stuff to write, but the album was over before I could get my head in to gear.

Highlights: Shenanigans, Jesus H. Christmas, Jimmy Hackeysack, Jacques Cousteau Punch Him in the Nuts, Happy Birthday Officer David Livingston

7/10

Christmas In The Stars: Star Wars Christmas Album - Meco

C3PO and R2D2 team up with disco king Meco to bring us the weirdest Christmas album possible. There is sadly no disco to be found, just a whole lot of saccharine and Star Wars references and Christmas nonsense, delivered in spoken word by C3PO and beeps from R2D2. Some other robots or something discuss the presents they have bought for other Star Wars characters. And now some kids are singing Merry Christmas to R2D2, but they just sang about him coming down the chimney. Do they think he is Santa Claus? Also, warming his wires by fire sounds like a serious fire hazard! If you need a singing teacher, C3PO is about the last person I would recommend. And you are clearly poorly-programmed droids if you think whistling is singing. At least Ryan Adams had the decency to sing about people getting punched in the nuts at Xmas time...

Highlights: The Odds Against Christmas, What Can You Get a Wookie for Christmas (When He Already Has a Comb?)

5/10

Christmas Will Break Your Heart [Single] - LCD Soundsystem

The most depressing Xmas song? This was the big LCD Soundsystem reunion single. Again, there is no disco to be found. If we're going to do Xmas with disco acts, I would like some disco, please.

6/10

Chronicles - Steve Winwood

Nothing like some 80s Winwood to wash away the silliness of Xmas celebrations in March. This is a good reminder I need to do a more in-depth listen to Steve Winwood's solo work; this is a good compilation and I enjoy the remix nature of some of the songs, but I am interested to hear the rest of his 80s output and get more of a insight into his songwriting.

Highlights: Valerie (Remix), Higher Love

8/10

Chu~♡ - F(x)

More random K-Pop songs in my iTunes library. And I am not complaining.

7/10

Cinema Trip - PASSPO☆

My favourite album? The greatest album? Have I claimed both of those things for 50 other albums so far? I don't have a lot more to say about this one, except 5 1/2 years later it is still the highest played album in my iTunes library - and on last check, バチェロレッテは終わらない was about 100 plays ahead of anything else. By Prime, those last three songs on this album are absolute perfection. Passenger for life!

Highlights: Music Navigation, 7's Up, Playground, ギミギミaction, フィルム, バチェロレッテは終わらない

9/10

The Circle - Bon Jovi

Man, these dudes knew how to open an album! The rest is very inspired by the times; think Coldplay and U2 and One Republic and similar type of bands. When it works, it works - because Richie Sambora is awesome. Some of the lyrics are pretty cringe; this was the middle of a global recession, so a lot of people were struggling, and Jon Bon Jovi tried to reflect that in his lyrics, but a rich rockstar singing lines like "They took my pension" just sounds lame. Your pension is safe and sound, buddy - just release another deluxe edition of Slippery When Wet and you'll be able to fund another beach house or restaurant to help feed the homeless. 

Highlights: We Weren't Born to Follow, Brokenpromiseland, Happy Now, Learn to Love

7/10

Circus Animals - Cold Chisel

I had been led to believe that by this album, Cold Chisel were not releasing good music. You only need to listen to the first song to realise that is a lie; there are three stone cold classics on this album and a bunch of badass rock'n'roll songs to accompany them. I definitely prefer the live version of Bow River - the harmonica solo just lifts the song to different level - but Barnesy's delivery of the last line of the studio version here is awesome. Ian Moss and Jimmy Barnes had super cool harmonies; such completely different sounding voices, but when harmonising together, it sounds fantastic. 

Highlights: You Got Nothing I Want, Bow River, Forever Now, When the War is Over

7.5/10

The Clash - The Clash

You can't go wrong with some classic English punk. And this album is about as English punk as it gets. Except, hilariously, this is the US version. Look, I don't know what's going on at the best of times. Just roll with it for now... I might have to get the UK version one day and compare the two, because this album is all sorts of cool.

Highlights: I Fought the Law, Clash City Rockers, I'm So Bored with the U.S.A., London's Burning

8/10

CLASH EP -  小玉しのぶ

Fun story; after seeing BiSH live in Kanagawa, I was at a train station in either Kanagawa or Yokohama (I don't recall correctly) and outside was a young woman performing songs and selling CDs. She was very talented, so I picked up a couple of her CDs - and I have never regretted, because this EP is brilliant. I'm not just throwing around hyperbole when I say Say may well be the most underrated pop rock song on the planet. It is a genuine reminder that great music is anywhere if you just go looking for it.

Highlights: Say, 境界線

9/10

The Clash Tribute - Elvis Costello, Dave Grohl, Bruce Springsteen & Steven Van Zandt

This was a performance of London Calling by a bunch of old dudes. I liked it at the time. Now not so much...

5/10

Class Mythology - Ryan Adams

I don't remember much about this release, except that it is just chill acoustic numbers. Really chill. Except Future Sparrow - that sounds like a full on Cardinals song.

Highlights: Your Name is on Fire

6.5/10

Cloud Nine - George Harrison

This was probably my first exposure to George Harrison outside of The Beatles; Got My Mind Set On You was a big hit and I probably taped it off the radio like most kids in those days. It stands as probably my favourite album of his from the 80s, for sure. He and Jeff Lynne were a fab team. Probably the most pop collection of songs he made in his whole solo career. 

Highlights: That's What it Takes, Got My Mind Set On You, Fish on the Sand, Devil's Radio

8/10

Clumsy - Our Lady Peace

By Prime! OLP were a force on this album. Raine Maida certainly has a unique voice that you either love or hate, and I fall in to the camp of the former. When he nailed his falsetto stuff it really added something to the songs. Lyrics on this album are top tier, although I still don't really know what he means by "the world's a subway". I have added a terribly-recorded live performance of Dear Prudence to the end, for some reason. 2025 LOGMAN would not do such a thing to an album...

Highlights: Superman's Dead, 4 A.M., Clumsy

8/10

Coach Carter: Music from the Motion Picture - Various Artists

This is purely Hope by Twista and Faith Evans. It is a solid groove; Twista's flow is not over the top and Faith just hooks us up with a nice chorus. Nice song.

7/10

Coachella - Ryan Adams

Even when I was a fan of this dude, this was kind of not that great to me. I just didn't think much of the performance and I still don't. Granted, it must have been difficult with all the noise from the other stages - hardly makes for the usual type of atmosphere he played in. 

Highlights: Making comments about everyone getting sad in the desert

4/10

Cold Chisel - Cold Chisel

I will repeat myself; the US mix of Khe Sanh is the best version - Barnes' vocals are just more polished and that harmony he pulls off is awesome. The rest of this album is very blues rock. And very Cold Chisel.

Highlights: Juliet, Khe Sanh, Darskarzine, H-Hour Hotel

7/10

"Albums" listened to so far: 314

2025 in 2025: Day 36

CHECK-IN - PASSPO☆
We've talked about this fantastic album before, so I'll spare you a minute of my gushing for PASSPO☆. And I'm busy, so don't have time to write about something I've already written about. Even if it is PASSPO☆. I'm sorry, PASSPO☆, for ignoring you! Needless to say, I am at least enjoying listening to PASSPO☆ in the morning.
Highlights: 少女飛行, キス=スキ, マテリアルGirl, ハカナ
8/10

CHECKMATE - ITZY
ITZY may well be the most consistent K-pop group since BTS. Somehow they have become my fav girls group, that is for sure.
Highlights: SNEAKERS, RACER, WHAT I WANT, DOMINO
7.5/10

CHESHIRE - ITZY
The bonus of all these fun pop songs is it is making my morning go quick and I can save my nonsense writing for more involved work. The down side is they go really quick before I can even think of what to say!
Highlights: Cheshire, Boys Like You
7/10

Chess (The Original Recording) - Various Artists
Quick rant; I bought some songs on iTunes a number of years ago, and then a couple of years it was re-released as an extended & remastered version. I used that version to complete the rest of the album, but iTunes would not let me purchase the songs I already had. So I'm left with a mix of songs from both versions - and ALL my favs are not remastered or anything. It is annoying, because the difference when listening to the album in full is quite noticeable. ANYWAYS this is possibly my favourite musical of all time, purely based on how amazing some of these songs are. What do you expect from ABBA's king songwriters? Sure, the whole thing is super 80s production and instrumentation, but that's part of what makes it so awesome. This album is also one of the reasons I fell in love with Elaine Page when I was like 5 years-old. Murray Head's performance is so spot on; his voice is clearly struggling with the range at times, but that adds to the character and passion in the songs. But the real show stealers on this are the musicians; Per Lindvall's fills in Nobody's Side add so much drama and tension, and Lasse Wellander's guitar solos are absolute perfection. Also, adding the bonus tracks helps - Press Conference should be before The Russian and Molokov, because it ties in to what they talk about in that track.
Highlights: Opening Ceremony, The American and Florence/Nobody's Side, The Deal (No Deal), Pity the Child
8/10

Chief Boot Knocka - Sir Mix-A-Lot
Haha good fun. Sir Mix-A-lot is not someone that pretends to be making anything other than big bass thumping booty shaking music to make your sub get a serious workout. I should know; my older brother and his friends would crank this while they cruised and you could hear their cars for streets away. 
Highlights: Sleepin' Wit My Fonk, Take My Stash, Put 'Em on the Glass
6/10

Chinese Democracy - Guns N' Roses
Was this the most expensive album ever made? Ten years and I think $14 million definitely put it up there in terms of anticipated albums. And bombs. But it isn't nearly as bad as people would have you believe. The problem was, it was never going to meet the hype and satisfy people - and make money. No matter what. Sure, it has its flaws (Buckethead on lead guitar, Axl's vocals being not so great), but there are some great jams on here. Certainly not a tough listen.
Highlights: Better, There Was a Time, Madagascar
6.5/10

Chisel: The Best Of Cold Chisel - Cold Chisel
This was a compilation that came out in the 90s and was my first real exposure to Cold Chisel; we grew up listening to Jimmy Barnes, but hadn't really heard much of Cold Chisel outside of the occasional hit. I've kept this in rotation for the live version of Bow River, because I'm too lazy to get the live album it is from. Though I should, because that is a great live album. Also, this version of Khe Sanh doesn't seem to be available anywhere else, and it is actually the version I prefer.
Highlights: Bow River (Live), Khe Sanh (US Remix)
8/10

The Chocolate Invasion - Prince
Prince released a lot of music in 2004. He released a lot of music all the time. And he recorded even more, apparently. This is a whole lot of funky sultry jams that he released only for his fan club or something. It's relatively fun, if not a little underwhelming. But hey, it's Prince.
Highlights: Judas Smile, Vavoom, High, U Make My Sun Shine
7/10

Chocolate Love - Girls' Generation
Appears to simply be the single - and a different version, at that. I might have to check out the original version, maybe?
7/10

Chocolate Starfish and the Hot Dog Flavored Water - Limp Bizkit
Limp Bizkit really are a guilty pleasure for me; I was a massive fan back in 2000, being an angry young white dude and all that, and then decided they were garbage - like most of the world did. Nowadays I can embrace that they are completely terrible, but it in a fun way. Like a bad movie or something, but not bad like Once Upon a Time in America, more bad like College Kickboxers. This album is particularly angry and heavy. And angry. Like, if you are into big loud guitars and drums and you just want to swear at everyone all the time, then this is the album for you! Bonus points for being advertised at WrestleMania. And thus my personal Chocolate trilogy is complete.
Highlights: Hot Dog, Full Nelson, My Way, Livin' It Up, Getcha Groove On, Boiler
6.5/10

"Albums" listened to so far: 297

2025 in 2025: Day 35

Charisma.BEST - Charisma.com

Gawddam I have a lot to say about this album, but I'm just too busy right now. Sure, it's a compilation that is almost rendered obsolete by my Charisma.com collection, but I've had to keep it because of a few songs that are from EPs and I am still missing the album not not me, which contains some of their best songs - most particularly #hashdark. Which is just a perfect song. I could listen to that all day. And this album. In fact, there are likely days when I have.

Highlights: もや燃やして, #hashdark, やれよ。, メキメキmore, りぼん

8/10

Charmbracelet - Mariah Carey

Mariah moving further in to... not different territory? Although, this album does contain her Eminem diss track - did she win that war? Also, an appearance from Mack 10? I take it back; this album is actually more in line with the style from Mariah Carey that I appreciate - good grooves, good singing, cool rappers. It is just a bit inconsistent, overall. But that is kind of how I view most Mariah albums, I guess.

Highlights: You Got Me, Clown, You Had Your Chance, Irresistible (West Side Connection), Subtle Invitation

6/10

Charmbracelet [Bonus Disc] - Mariah Carey

This is some re-release tour edition or something. Likely from Japan? It is just four bonus songs. Busta Rhymes is not much of a singer. 

Highlights: There Goes My Heart

6/10

Check Your Head - Beastie Boys

I hate to admit this, but for many a listen to this album I could not work out how half the song titles aligned with the songs, because they mention so many of the different song titles in other songs. And there are all these little interludes and what not. Look, I was young and stupid, okay? The main point is I was listening to this album and it is awesome and Beastie Boys really were the best. MCA on Professor Booty is just 5-star delivery and attitude.

Highlights: Pass The Mic, So What'cha Want, Stand Together, In 3's

8/10

Check Your Head [Bonus Disc] Beastie Boys

This is from the 2009 reissue. A whole lot of remixes - including So What'Cha Want with Cypress Hill, so that makes me happy. Then there is also the full album commentary from the Beastie Boys themselves. Like watching a movie with commentary, except you can't watch anything. It is very interesting for a musician and Beastie Boys fan.

Highlights: The Skills to Pay the Bills, Stand Together (Live), Finger Lickin' Good (Government Cheese Remix)

7/10

"Albums" listened to so far: 287

2025 in 2025: Day 34

CARROTS and STiCKS - BiSH

Releasing CARROTS and STiCKS as two separate EPs before releasing this album was also probably their biggest scam until the whole 'we are disbanding... one day'. This was the biggest switch to being a straight up pop band, in my opinion; there's still full on punk stuff going on here and some badass riffs and whatnot, but also some very catchy radio-friendly pop rock sort of things. MORE THAN LiKE may well be their best pop song ever and Glasses' delivery on that one line is awesome. It's a pity the mastering on that one song is really messed up. STiCKS in general, as an EP, was the most chill pop stuff they had released up to that point. It also features some serious great bass playing, particularly on I am me. And then CARROTS was mostly crazy. So needless to say, this album is all over the place and totally schizophrenic. 

Highlights: MORE THAN LiKE, FiNALLY, I am me., GRUNGE WORLD

7/10

CARROTS and STiCKS [Bonus Disc] - BiSH

Of course I purchased the deluxe version of this album, because the bonus disc was a collection of all the singles released between their previous album and this one. Well, before the CARROTS and STiCKS EPs. Sure, another disc totally obsolete thanks to the pizza box that I am yet to import to my iTunes library, but I have no regrets. This disc is awesome and there is not a bad song on it. 

Highlights: HiDE the BLUE, NON TiE-UP, 二人なら

9/10

Carved in Stone - Vince Neil

Remember when I was going to do my Mötley Crüe Marathon, but had to quit halfway through because of another lockdown, which meant I watched every episode of UWF instead? What a time to be alive... Anyways, I actually listened to this album for the first time ever during that time and even wrote a mini-review that is still sitting in draft:

I remember seeing this album on sale, but never actually picking it up. I was too busy spending all my money on Pearl Jam bootlegs like a clown. Anways... what the actual fuck?!? Vince doing rap/rock?? One Way has a funky R&B saxophone solo. In fact, it sounds like new-jack-era Michael Jackson. Now that I've realised that, this album is getting high marks! Black Promises is more in that standard 1995 rock sound. And then we get a ballad about his dead daughter. I'd criticise a lot of aspects, but I'm sure it wasn't easy to do, considering the timing. Still doesn't excuse it from being a bad song, though. Can we go back to rap/rock new-jack swing? Instead I get more Alice In Chains meets Audioslave inspired angry music. Which Vince sounds surprisingly good singing. But, dammit, you started this album with weird genre-mashing stupid music and I want more of that!!! Liar.

Highlights: One Way, Find A Dream

6/10

Catching Tales - Jamie Cullum

I am so familiar with this artist that I couldn't even spell his surname properly... he would seem to be kind of like Amy Winehouse, except not nearly as interesting. 

Highlights: Hopefully this CD was cheap?

5/10

Ceremonials - Florence + the Machine

This is all very melodramatic and theatrical. But I'm not saying that is a bad thing - I quite enjoy the drums from 1412 and the overall epic nature of almost every song. Only issue is it all really sounds the same; like I feel like this was just one big 95 minute song, with varying bits of quality. 95 minutes. That is just ridiculous. That is longer than Blazing Saddles. And there were much less fart jokes.

Highlights: Shake It Out, Breaking Down, Remain Nameless, No Light No Light

7/10 album 6/10 deluxe version

Challenge 4Da Change - Kinetic Flow

This is probably the first time I'm listening to this album; I don't know a whole lot, other than this is another Korean hip-hop group. It is mostly chill and pretty groovy. Also, one of these dudes has the weirdest voice - almost Muppet-like - so it makes it almost impossible to take them seriously. And considering I do not understand Korean and therefore have no idea what they are rapping about, that probably doesn't matter too much.

Highlights: The Night We Separated, Comics 2006, Peace 4da Kidz

6.5/10

Charango - Morcheeba

Definitely not as strong an album as Big Calm, but similar in vibes; chill out groovy London alternative pop with a side of electronic trip and other buzz words.

Highlights: Aqualung, Way Beyond

6/10

"Albums" listened to so far: 282