2025 in 2025: Day 180

Ultraviolence - Lana Del Rey

I recall being utterly disappointed in this album on release, but after revisiting it a few years later, I was actually quite drawn to it. And I think it has aged better than Born to Die, perhaps? There is a slightly different vibe, without being as boring and vapid as Honeymoon, and without making me actually listen to the album by choice on any given day...

Highlights: West Coast, Cruel World, Money Power Glory, Black Beauty

6.5/10

Under Construction - Missy Elliott

All the talking explaining the tracks is such a... choice. Sometimes pretty hilarious, but also breaks up the flow at times. But the bounce! Timbaland brought DA BOUNCE! And Missy's rhymes are all sorts of clever and engaging. 

Highlights: Gossip Folks, Work It, Bring the Pain, Can You Hear Me

7.5/10

Under Pressure - The Used & My Chemical Romance

There was a live version of this that was quite fun... in 2005, when I was mid-20s emo LOGMAN. Now I am mid-40s cool as a cucumber LOGMAN and I can still appreciate it somewhat, while also acknowledging that it is hilariously inferior to the original and should be deleted from existence.

4/10

Under Rug Swept - Alanis Morissette

I do wonder how this album could have ended up if Alanis had continued to collaborate with Glen Ballard; would he have helped to force more hooks? Or would he have upped the energy somewhat? Because this album is more relaxed than even MTV Unplugged and is more focused on what she wants to say than making hit songs.

Highlights: Surrendering, Narcissus, Hands Clean, Precious Illusions

7/10

Under the Iron Sea - Keane

Classic example of a band getting famous making sad music, but the follow-up music is suddenly much happier. So clearly being rich and famous suddenly improved their life. Fair enough! 

Highlights: Is It Any Wonder?, A Bad Dream

6/10

The Understanding - Memphis Bleek

I only have the song Is That Your Chick (The Lost Verses), because it features Jay-Z and Missy and when they performed it at Jay-Z's "retirement" shows, I thought it was pretty killer. Still do!

8/10

Undertow - Tool

There are so many cool riffs on this album - I wonder if I can remember how to play them? I might have to test that some day. Nineties Tool is the best Tool.

Highlights: 4 Degrees, Crawl Away, Bottom, Flood

8/10

Undiscovered - James Morrison

This album is surpisingly enjoyable; I was expecting something along the lines of Jamie Cullum, but instead Morrison's voice is very soulful and his lyrics decent. Adult jazz pop, but not so... white?

Highlights: Undiscovered, Better Man, One Last Chance

7/10

Unfinished Business - Jay-Z & R. Kelly

Outtakes from their misjudged collaboration. The funniest part is R. Kelly singing about their "world tour", like he was not expecting it to get cancelled halfway through. There is nothing here that is even close to being as offensive as found on their first album, so this may actually be better!

Highlights: We Got Em Goin', Mo' Money, Don't Let Me Die

5.5/10

The Unforgettables E.P. - MONOEYES

No lie - I was both excited and disappointed when this was released. Dude said he was writing The End of Yesterday like it would be his last album, and then five years later he was like 'Oh, I guess maybe I just meant with my best band - I will still make music with these inferior ones!'. And the whole EP rocks hard, so in my face, I guess...

Highlights: Ladybird, Atmosphere, The Unforgettables, Adrenaline

9/10

Unmasked - Kiss

Kiss turn into a cheesy 80s pop rock band and I love it for them. And then they needed Bryan Adams to come and make them rock harder. Make it make sense.

Highlights: Shandi, Tomorrow, Talk to Me, Two Sides of the Coin

8/10

Up All Night - Razorlight

This is the sound of a hungry, young indie band putting it all out there and capturing a sound and vibe they will never be able to repeat.

Highlights: Don't Go Back to Dalston, To the Sea, Rock'n Roll Lies, Rip It Up

7.5/10

Up the Bracket - The Libertines

Peter Doherty delivers his vocals likes he been up all night on coke and chugging a bottle of whiskey between takes. Electric guitars so raw and sloppy it sounds like he is on the verge of passing out. Acoustic guitar sounds like he is using some half broken piece of junk from a local secondhand store. Super solid drumming that somehow holds them all together. This album really captures that early-00s UK indie punk rock perfectly!

Highlights: Death on the Stairs, I Get Along, Up the Bracket, The Boy Looked at Johnny

8/10

UP to ME - BiSH

Just another average heavy idol single from the BiSH is OVER run. Genuinely nothing to write home about... so I will just keep it in the BLog.

Highlights: YOUTH, UP to ME

6.5/10

"Albums" listened to so far: 1770

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2025 in 2025: Day 140

PAiNT it BLACK - BiSH

I have the b-side, SCHOOLYARD, becuase it is seriously awesome and I was on a bit of a mission to complete my BiSH collection... until they one-upped me by releasing their full discography in one big collection. In a pizza box. So, yeah, this is totally redundant now.

8/10

Pandora's Box - Aerosmith

A massive collection of 70s hits, live songs and alternate takes. It is kind of fun to hear the evolution of Steven Tyler's voice - dude sounds like a drunk having a laugh on their earliest recordings - but, otherwise, this is all very redundant. I have all the studio album tracks on their albums. And the live stuff is not that hot. It does have me looking forward to listening to Rocks, though.

Highlights: Sweet Emotion, No More No More, Nobody's Fault, Walk This Way

6.5/10

Panic - Alexei Sayle

Sadly, this is only Didn't You Kill My Brother? Alexei Sayle is very funny AND a full on Marxist as well. Hooray, the fat bastard! (FYI I am not insulting him, it was a song on his sketch show and I am sure zero people would get the reference, hence the disclaimer instead of just writing something else like a normal person).

7/10

Parachutes - Coldplay

Back when Coldplay were kind of a rock band? I would almost argue indie borderline folk rock, perhaps? Not very happy? Anyway you look at it, I have not listened to this album in probably 20 years and I had forgotten that it is actually very good - I have been too distracted by how terrible they have become. Except for that song with BTS. Keeping everything so much simpler would appear to have pushed them a bit more creatively. 

Highlights: Spies, Yellow, Everything's Not Lost, Don't Panic

7/10

Parade - Prince & The Revolution

Bah gawd this album is so bizarre. I can understand why The Revolution bailed on Prince after this; things are fairly minimalist, without having the normal structure and actual music you would expect from a Prince song. That said, there is still some serious funk and great rock to found in here. I would welcome a remix of this album, because I feel like the bass is sorely lacking and that could make a big improvement.

Highlights: Anotherloverholenyohead, Kiss, Sometimes it Snows in April, New Position

7/10

Paradise - Lana Del Rey

LOGMAN: Oh, hey, I have not listened to this in forever. I do not even remember the songs at all. *Cola starts* This song is not bad... *Listens to lyrics* oh... no...

Highlights: Not that

5/10

Paris (Live At Le Zenith 1992 / 30th Anniversary Expanded Edition) - The Cure

This is a very solid performance, and I am going to credit about 80% of that to Boris and his solid drumming - because the tempos is nice and reserved, almost on the beat and not pushing things at all. Also, I can appreciate how different the setlist is to the other live albums I have from The Cure. 

Highlights: Charlotte Sometimes, Play For Today, One Hundred Years, Close to Me

7/10

Party Queen - Ayumi Hamasaki

This album is the absolute nadir of Ayu's career. And I blame Timmy 100% for his terrible songwriting and attempts at rapping. THAT SAID some of the cringe is actually fun? Like, NaNaNa is incredibly tragic, but boy howdy do I love that chorus for that very reason. And then parts of the album - the songs without Timmy - are some of the greatest songs of Ayu's career? Well, top 20 songs, perhaps. So yeah, I do not know what the hell to say. 

Highlights: reminds me, call, how beautiful you are, Letter

6.5/10 (8/10 without Timmy. Maybe even 8.5)

The Passage - Kebee

Our next installment of random K-Pop songs in my library. At least time, I seem to have about half of the album. This is a bit less hip-hop and more R&B compared to some of the other random stuff I have. It is kind of groovy.

Highlights: Where are the Claps?

6/10

Past Masters - The Beatles

I will be honest: this is one of those compilations that I very rarely pay attention to, which is probably very silly. When I do listen to it, like today, I am just a very happy person, because it is mostly very good singles. And then it gets to 1969 and there are a bunch of killer tracks that I absolutely love.

Highlights: Don't Let Me Down, Old Brown Shoe, The Ballad of John and Yoko, Revolution, You Know My Name (Look Up the Number), Day Tripper

8/10

Past To Present 1977-1990 - Toto

I have never really been the biggest fan of Toto. They are seriously brilliant musicians, but maybe there is something too perfect about them?  However, some of their singles are undeniably awesome. 

Highlights: Hold the Line, Rosanna, Africa, Stop Loving You

7/10

Patient!! [BiSH Ver.] - BiSH

I have been waiting for this! The actual end of BiSH and it is exactly the extreme awesome I wanted. I could listen to this again and again and again... Start the day with BiSH, end the day with BiSH.

10/10

"Albums" listened to so far: 1260

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2025 in 2025: Day 96

Home Tapes - John Lennon

Outtakes and home recordings and demos. The outtakes are very similar to the final released tracks - except God here is just a ripper of an acoustic number. I Found Out has some pretty different vocal layers going on.

Highlights: God [Studio Outtake], Mother [Studio Outtake], Nobody Told Me [Home Recording]

6.5/10

Homework - Daft Punk

I like Daft Punk as much as anyone, but for the most part this album really does sound like the most typical European 90s techno-funk. It did not grab me in 1997 and it does not do much for me now. So maybe I do not like Daft Punk as much as anyone? That kick in Da Funk is all sorts of cowabunga.

Highlights: Da Funk, Rollin' & Scratchin', High Fidelity, Indo Silvery Club, Alive

6.5/10

HONEY - SCANDAL

Fun fact: this album was my introduction to SCANDAL. I saw pictures of Haruna's signature Telecaster and it looked so good I figured I should check out the artist related to it. Now I really want Mami's 'Omochi' Stratocaster. Not to be outdone, Tomomi's bass tone on this album is fire. If they do a third Fender collaboration, I hope they give her an awesome signature bass and then I would complete the lineup!

Highlights: Over, 窓を開けたら, 恋するユニバース, ふたり

8.5/10

Honeymoon - Lana Del Rey

I am going to write this before even making it through the first song: this album is long and boring. I will update at the end if listening to this full album again changes my mind. Nope; an hour later I found one very good song amongst a sea of nothingness.

Highlights: The Blackest Day

5/10

Honky Chateau - Elton John

I am often embarrassed at how much my Elton John collection is lacking. Well, the CD section of it; my vinyl section is pretty solid. Like this album; it is nothing special, but is pretty solid. What is Bernie Taupin's obsession with Americana?!?

Highlights: Susie (Dramas), Rocket Man, Mellow, I Think I'm Going to Kill Myself

7.5/10

Hooray for Boobies - The Bloodhound Gang

This is purely the song Mope, because I generally do not care for this band. But they managed to combine a whole bunch of 80s pop samples and this is the best Metallica have ever sounded.

8/10

Hopes and Fears - Keane

Someone please tell Apple what punk music is - because Keane sure ain't it. It is all fine and dandy, but some of these songs are sure repetitive. 

Highlights: Somewhere Only We Know, Bend and Break, Everybody's Changing, Bedshaped

6.5/10

Hot Fuss - The Killers

This was my album of the year in 2004. I still consider it one of the most awesome debut albums ever. And Jenny Was a Friend of Mine is the most awesome opener. Brandon Flowers had such a great voice on this album - screamed at just right the amount for me - and it just got worse with each subsequent album. But boy oh boy was this a great reminder that they did once live up to their name.

Highlights: Jenny Was a Friend of Mine, Mr. Brightside, Somebody Told Me, All These Things That I've Done, Glamorous Indie Rock & Roll, Believe Me Natalie

9/10

Hot in the Shade - Kiss

I'm running out of nonsense to say, so just read my Kissathon post about this one. I somewhat agree with it today...

Highlights: Hide Your Heart, Forever, Silver Spoon, Little Caesar

7/10

Hot Sauce Committee Part Two - Beastie Boys

I would like to hear the real part two one day, but obviously that will never happen and this will forever stand as the last release the Beastie Boys ever do. At least it was a banger of an album to go out on. Just so much badass rhymes over creative beats and then one old school hardcore punk jam. 

Highlights: Too Many Rappers, Lee Majors Come Again, The Lisa Lisa/Full Force Routine, Ok

8/10

Hot Space - Queen

The anomaly in the Queen discography. The live versions are definitely better, but it is not nearly as bad as some people would have you believe - there is still some charm to some of these songs. And good grooves.

Highlights: Dancer, Under Pressure, Staying Power, Action This Day

7/10

Hotel Paper - Michelle Branch

This is just the single Breathe. I seem to recall there being another big single from this album. I really should check out the whole thing one day.

10/10

Hotter Than Hell - Kiss

This album still sounds as terrible as ever. One day I am going to get the 2014 iTunes version, because it does sound marginally better. My how I wish I had already got that for this listen. Still surprised we did not get a massive super deluxe banana edition of this and first album for the 50th anniversaries.

Highlights: Got to Choose, Parasite, Hotter Than Hell, All the Way, Comin' Home

9/10

"Albums" listened to so far: 800

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2025 in 2025: Day 27

Boogie Wonderland: The Best of Earth, Wind & Fire - Earth, Wind & Fire

This right here is over 2 hours of funky disco tunes and soulful ballads. It may surprise you to find that I enjoy the disco songs more than the ballads. And the disco songs are mostly fantastic. There's also random guitar shredding on a few songs, which is hilarious. On Your Face is most recogniseable to me as being sampled for MC Hammer's song. This album is a serious groove for the full 2 hours.

Highlights: September, Saturday Nite

7/10

BORN PINK - BLACKPINK

Pink Venom is such a weird track; everything except the chorus is awesome, but man that chorus is dumb. The rest of these songs kind of suffer from that problem where you think the song is going to go somewhere awesome, but then doesn't, so it kind of falls just short of being special. Still pretty solid, though. So this is all my BLACKPINK done before we even finish a couple of months? BLACKPINK are no longer in my area?

Highlights: Pink Venom, Shut Down, Yeah Yeah Yeah, Tally

7/10

Born This Way - Lady Gaga

As with most Gaga albums, the opening track is pure FIRE. Actually, a whole bunch of songs of this album are straight-up awesomeness. Some average songs sprinkled in, as well. Judas has the same problem as Pink Venom, though the chorus isn't quite as dumb, just a let down from how badass the rest of the song is. Well, apart from the gawdawful lyrics. There's really a lot of talk about Jesus on this album, as well. I have always felt that maybe the album is a bit too long. It's 17 songs. No interludes or skits. 17 actual songs. Sure, I'm part of the problem by buying the deluxe edition, but the extra songs from that are actually worth it - there were a couple of others I would cut instead of them. But not Brian May. He should be on every song. Also, why is there no uncensored version of this album available? It was insulting that I wasn't able to get The Fame Monster on CD in uncensored form, but not even iTunes carries Born This Way with bad language. Wild.

Highlights: Marry The Night, Government Hooker, Hair, Yoü And I, The Edge of Glory

8/10

Born This Way [Special Edition] - Lady Gaga

This is the bonus disc that came with the special edition of the album. It is merely remixes of a bunch of the songs. And they are mostly decent. If you want to get your dance on to some Lady Gaga, you could do much worse.

Highlights: Born This Way (Country Road Version)

6/10

BORN TO BE - ITZY

Talk about a poptastic day! One of the strongest releases from ITZY. And I say this as a total long-term fan that has been listening to them for a total of maybe 9 months. Crown On My Head is awesome and all, but the live version with the band was about 10 times more awesome. I even appreciate that gif that iTunes does for the album cover. Flawless release.

Highlights: Crown On My Head, Escalator

8.5/10

Born to Die - Lana Del Rey

I remember the massive hype on this album when it was first released. A beautiful woman singing dark and moody songs about murder and death and mafia gangsters and all sorts of American classics. Of course people were going to go nuts about her. So if that is your jam, then this album is tops. What I find most interesting is her way of changing her voice to give different characters for each song. It's all very dramatic.

Highlights: Off to the Races, This is What Makes Us Girls, Lolita

7/10

Boston - Boston

Obviously the opening track is super legendary and awesome, but the rest of this album is super rockin' and awesome as well. A whole lot of harmonising guitar solos! I recall listening to this in high school a fair bit - perfect summer vibes. Because we spent high school listening to and pushing 70s rock. You got a problem with that? Shiizz, I ain't afraid of you mofos!

Highlights: More Than a Feeling, Piece of Mind, Rock & Roll Band, Let Me Take You Home Tonight

8/10

Bounce - Bon Jovi

Jon Bon Jovi is angry about 9/11. Me too; that was the date of the Montreal Screwjob and we must never forget such treachery. This album features some of the absolute heaviest of Bon Jovi songs - it also completely goes from awesome to awful super quick. JBJ's attempt at Sprinsteen storytelling is kind of cringe to me. Richie Sambora's playing and singing on this album is awesome, but even he can't save some of these ballads from being absolute dreck. BUT the good songs are VERY good. The Distance is one of their very best power ballads. I could very easily listen to this album again. Well, half of it. They should have stuck with this producer.

Highlights: Everyday, The Distance, Misunderstood, Bounce

6/10

"Albums" listened to so far: 224