791. Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness

Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness
The Smashing Pumpkins
1995

Tracks
1. Mellon Collie And The Infinite Sadness
2. Tonight Tonight
3. Jellybelly
4. Zero
5. Here Is No Why
6. Bullet With Butterfly Wings
7. To Forgive
8. Fuck You (An Ode To No One)
9. Love
10. Cupid De Locke
11. Galapogos
12. Muzzle
13. Porcelina Of The Vast Oceans
14. Take Me Down
15. Where Boys Fear To Tread
16. Bodies
17. Thirty Three
18. In The Arms Of Sleep
19. 1979
20. Tales Of A Scorched Earth
21. Thru The Eyes Of Ruby
22. Stumbleine
23. XYU
24. We Only Come Out At Night
25. Beautiful
26. Lily (My One And Only)
27. By Starlight
28. Farewell And Goodnight

A two hour album? Really? Don't they realize I am trying to hit the 800 milestone this weekend? How utterly inconsiderate.

Milestone mania aside, two hours was still way too long for this entry and I actually like the Smashing Pumpkins. This is a very self indulgent album that could really benefit from some editing. The first half was far superior to the second. In fact, we should have just cut them off at track number 17 ("Thirty Three" was my personal favorite, then it was just downhill from there). 

"Bullet with Butterfly Wings" was also pretty damn good as well.

RATING: 3/5

775. Live Through This

Live Through This
Hole
1994

Tracks
1. Violet
2. Miss World
3. Plump
4. Asking For It
5. Jennifer's Body
6. Doll Parts
7. Credit In The Straight World
8. Softer, Softest
9. She Walks On Me
10. I Think That I Would Die
11. Gutless
12. Rock Star

It's a little eerie listening to this album, knowing that Kurt Cobain died just four days after this was released. I mean, I am not one of those troubled people who thinks Courtney Love killed him. But it's weird to listen to music created by somebody right before their life is blown to smithereens. 

At least, it's pretty good music. It has a clear Nirvana influence, but definitely its own distinct flavor. And that distinct flavor comes from Courtney screeching her head off. But it is still really fun.

Also, Miss Love spoke out against Harvey Weinstein when no one else really would. I think her words are worth listening to, even if she is screaming them.

RATING: 4/5

769. Superunknown

Superunknown
Soundgarden
1994

Tracks
1. Let Me Drown
2. My Wave
3. Fell On Black Days
4. Mailman
5. Superunknown
6. Head Down
7. Black Hole Sun
8. Spoonman
9. Limo Wreck
10. The Day I Tried To Live
11. Kickstand
12. Fresh Tendrils
13. 4th Of July
14. Half
15. Like Suicide
16. She Likes Surprises

I was all prepared to dislike this album, with its indecent runtime and lack of spaces. I was actually pleasantly surprised to find I quite enjoyed this, even if forty minutes might have been a slightly more digestible album.

There were some boring tracks on the album, but songs like "Black Hole Sun" made up for the dull stretches. Overall not too exciting, but I find I am enjoying the meh 90s albums more than the meh 80s albums.

Too long, but could be great if a few songs were cut.

RATING: 3/5

742. In Utero

In Utero
Nirvana
1993

Tracks
1. Serve The Servants
2. Scentless Apprentice
3. Heart Shaped Box
4. Rape Me
5. Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge On Seattle
6. Dumb
7. Very Ape
8. Milk It
9. Pennyroyal Tea
10. Radio Friendly Unit Shifter
11. Tourette's
12. All Apologies/Gallons Of Rubbing Alcohol Flow Through The Strip

You might have predicted my reaction to this album already based on the fact that there's a track called "Rape Me." While that certainly wasn't the most thought provoking song (and the List has been spoiling me lately with beautiful lyrics), I was still able to enjoy most of this.

The production quality of this album is really superb. It's less commercial friendly than Nevermind, so it feels rawer. I think it is the superior album because it feels more authentic, to the band and to the grunge movement.

Sad that such a talented artist couldn't control his demons. 

RATING: 4/5

730. Dirt

Dirt
Alice in Chains
1992

Tracks
1. Them Bones
2. Dam That River
3. Rain When I Die
4. Sick Man
5. Rooster
6. Junkhead
7. Dirt
8. God Smack
9. Hate To Feel
10. Angry Chair
11. Down In A Hole
12. Would

I suppose you could categorize this as grunge, but it is also much more heavy metal sounding than grunge. As I am pretty ambivalent about grunge anyway, this really didn't do much to endear the genre to me.

I don't have much to say about this one, only that I was bored and it sounded like a hundred other albums we've had on the List so far. On the plus side, I believe Nick Cave is about to save us from this terrible run of albums. 

RATING: 2/5

724. Dirty

Dirty
Sonic Youth
1992

Tracks
1. 100%
2. Swimsuit Issue
3. Theresa's Sound-World
4. Drunken Butterfly
5. Shoot
6. Wish Fulfillment
7. Sugar Kane
8. Orange Rolls, Angel's Spit
9. Youth Against Fascism
10. Nic Fit
11. On The Strip
12. Chapel Hill
13. JC
14. Purr
15. Creme Brulee

When I started this album, I thought Sonic Youth was moving to a more mainstream sound. Then I heard "Drunken Butterfly" and thought maybe not. 

I think I am warming up to grunge, which took me a little while. There is definitely a line between noise and music that Sonic Youth tends to cross frequently. I could do without the feedback, but I do like their vocals and lyrics.

So another decent album and hopefully this streak will continue.

RATING: 3/5

698. Ten

Ten
Pearl Jam
1991

Tracks
1. Once
2. Even Flow
3. Alive
4. Why Go
5. Black
6. Jeremy
7. Oceans
8. Porch
9. Garden
10. Deep
11. Release

I think this is one of those albums that serious music aficionados have great disdain for; those are always the albums I want to love the most. Unfortunately, I didn't take to this one as much as I wanted to.

So it's grunge music, but it's a bit watered down for the masses. That doesn't earn my contempt, but it does make this a rather forgettable album. Enjoyable in the moment, but not too rewarding.

An inoffensive but skippable album.

RATING; 3/5 

695. Every Good Boy Deserves Fudge

Every Good Boy Deserves Fudge
Mudhoney
1991

Tracks
1. Generation Genocide
2. Let It Slide
3. Good Enough
4. Something So Clear
5. Thorn
6. Into The Drink
7. Broken Hands
8. Who You Drivin' Now
9. Move Out
10. Shoot The Moon
11. Fuzzgun 91
12. Pokin' Around
13. Don't Fade IV
14. Check Out Time

This is more along the lines of what I thought early 90s music would be: pure grunge, and I actually really enjoyed it. It sounds very rough and unpolished, but I greatly prefer that to the overproduction of modern music.

Did anybody else get serious Neil Young vibes from this album? I like it when bands pull influences outside of their chosen genre. I guess there was a heavy Stooges influence as well.

So a great improvement from their previous EP on the list, Superfuzz Bigmuff. I actually get the title this time, though I learned it as Every Good Boy Does Fine. I guess deserving fudge is now considered too "blue."

RATING: 4/5

617. Superfuzz Bigmuff

Superfuzz Bigmuff
Mudhoney
1988

Tracks
1. Need
2. Chain That Door
3. Mudride
4. No One Has
5. If I Think
6. In 'N' Out of Grace

So this is an odd entry, as it is an EP, which I didn't think fell in the parameters of this List. It's only about twenty minutes long and contains six tracks. When I realized I hated it, it was quite a relief that it would be over quickly.

Okay, maybe I didn't hate it, but grunge music isn't my thing. Unfortunately, I think the List is going to doggedly record every step in the grunge movement, which is why they bent the rules to include this on the List. Classic grunge privilege. 

So a fast and angry entry that is entirely skippable.

RATING: 2/5