Guitar Town
Steve Earle
1986
Tracks
1. Guitar Town
2. Goodbye's All We've Got Left
3. Hillbilly Highway
4. Good Ol' Boy (Gettin' Tough)
5. My Old Friend The Blues
6. Someday
7. Think It Over
8. Fearless Heart
9. Little Rock 'N' Roller
10. Down The Road
I am attempting to get more writing done during the week by shaking up my writing routine. This involves putting an album on in the morning, writing for the entire length of the album, that swinging around here to share my thoughts about it, all before the work day begins. Consequently, this would mean increasing my speed through the List, and maybe finishing this project within the next couple years. We'll see how it goes.
I wouldn't consider myself the biggest country fan, but the mention of the genre does not induce sudden spasms in me, like the mention of metal. But there is actually some country that is quite good, this just, unfortunately, isn't it.
There are a couple of decent tracks on this album, mostly when he sounds like someone else, like Bruce Springsteen in "Someday" and Johnny Cash in "Fearless Heart." Songs like "Hillybilly Highway," though, can be wholeheartedly skipped.
New writing routine, new me! Tomorrow is a metal reggae album. That's just...great.
RATING: 3/5
Skylarking
XTC
1986
Tracks
1. Summer's Cauldron
2. Grass
3. Meeting Place
4. That's Really Super Supergirl
5. Ballet For A Rainy Day
6. 1000 Umbrellas
7. Season Cycle
8. Earn Enough For Us
9. Big Day
10. Another Satellite
11. Mermaid Smiled
12. Man Who Sailed Around His Soul
13. Dying
14. Sacrificial Bonfire
I was really looking forward to this album, as XTC never fails to deliver. I wasn't disappointed, and they managed to create an enjoyable and cohesive album.
How fun is "That's Really Super Supergirl"? It was nerdy and sweet, which are not two adjectives that bandy about a lot on this List. The other tracks are great too; "Earn Enough for Us" has been a favorite of mine for years.
While other albums from this decade are firmly situated in the 80s, this sounds like something that could have been released yesterday. If the a worldwide pandemic wasn't unfolding, that is.
RATING: 4/5
Raising Hell
Run DMC
1986
Tracks
1. Peter Piper
2. It's Tricky
3. My Adidas
4. Walk This Way
5. Is It Love
6. Perfection
7. Hit It Run
8. Raising Hell
9. You Be Illin'
10. Dumb Girl
11. Son Of Byford
12. Proud To Be Black
I was so excited to listen to the next album on this List, Skylarking, that I listened to two albums this week. Hey, a couple more random bursts of enthusiasm like that could ensure that I finish this List in less than two hundred years.
I actually enjoyed this album, although there were a couple of low points. I thought "Dumb Girl" was really strange and the comment section for that video is some kind of Mecca for neckbeards. I did love their version of "Walk This Way." Some people might consider it ripping off, I prefer to think of it as a "homage" (unfortunately, my English professors never were enlightened in this way).
I'm enjoying exploring this genre through the List. If only the Listmakers were as passionate about hip-hop as they are about metal.
RATING: 4/5
Graceland
Paul Simon
1986
Tracks
1. Boy In The Bubble
2. Graceland
3. I Know What I Know
4. Gumboots
5. Diamonds On The Soles Of Her Shoes
6. You Can Call Me Al
7. Under African Skies
8. Homeless
9. Crazy Love Vol 2
10. All Around The World Or The Myth Of Fingerprints
I think we could all use a pick me up right about now and I can't think of a better man suited for the task. Paul Simon is amazing here, creating a happy and uplifting album that is still fresh today.
The genius of this album is in its genre blending; you can hear many influences here and I love that he collaborated with so many great African artists. The album moves very gracefully through moods, going from playful to contemplative without feeling abrupt. It's hard to pick a favorite track; I will probably have the entire album on repeat over the next few days. Right now, I am obsessed with "Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes" and "Crazy Love Vol 2."
The perfect quarantine album and one of my favorites from the List so far.
RATING: 5/5
Throwing Muses
Throwing Muses
1986
Tracks
1. Call Me
2. Green
3. Hate My Way
4. Rabbits Dying
5. America
6. Fear
7. Stand Up
8. Soul Soldier
I hope everybody is holding up well and maintaining their sanity. It is, at the very least, a great time to catch up on projects like this one. I wasn't expecting to enjoy this album as much as I did, but I am happy to report that we have broken our streak of ho-hum albums.
You can tell they are breaking some new ground, and you can see the influence this album has had on future groups. Strangely, I haven't heard this band referenced very much. I am hoping they appear on the List again.
It's also a thrill to have a woman show up on this List, unfortunately it is a rather rare occurrence. Great album, great band.
RATING: 4/5
Reign in Blood
Slayer
1986
Tracks
1. Angel Of Death
2. Piece By Piece
3. Necrophobic
4. Altar Of Sacrifice
5. Jesus Saves
6. Criminally Insane
7. Reborn
8. Epidemic
9. Postmortem
10. Raining Blood
The last two albums were not heavy metal, and naturally, the Listmakers have found this unacceptable. So we are once again forced to endure songs with titles like "Necrophobic" and "Jesus Saves."
Mercifully, the album is very short, so the angry, repetitive songs are not weighed down by gratuitous guitar solos (looking at you, Metallica). If music is at its core a form of emotional expression, this album is really not interested in communicating anything other than pure rage. This isn't entirely relatable to me, my emotions (and I think most people's emotions) tend to be more complicated than that.
But complicated isn't really the word I would use to describe an album like Reign in Blood.
RATING: 2/5
