Frozen - Official Soundtrack

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Label: Walt Disney
Genre: Soundtrack
Year: 2013
Recommended by: Sarah Sherry

Let it go. Let it go. I can't hold it back anymore. Don't sing it. Just say it. I SAID DON'T SING IT.

Anyways, Disney makes good songs. It's surprising that this movie became such a huge hit and the song was being played everywhere. I enjoy Anna's songs a lot more than Elsa's. I think it's because I'm a huge hipster, but I've always been more into brunettes. Although, they do steal the Arrested Development joke about finishing each other's sandwiches. 

Also, did you know the soundtrack contains the entire score! So, that's fun.

Black Keys - Brothers

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Label: Nonesuch
Genre: Blues Rock
Year: 2010
Recommended by: Alura Henry

he Black Keys are awesome. Every song is good. They sound grungy and dirty and rough and scratchy in all the right ways. They also make pretty excellent music videos.

Brothers brought back blues rock into the main scene. They recorded in the famous Muscle Shoals studio. Watch the documentary on the awesome history of that place. Dan Carney and Dan Auerbach were able to create an amazing sound between two men is simply amazing. Danger Mouse produced the popular single "Tighten Up" and it has the greatest impact on the eardrums. 

Brothers is great. But you knew that already.

Timeflies - The Scotch Tape

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Label: Self-Released
Genre: Pop, Electronic
Year: 2011
Recommended by: Chrissy Walker

This doesn't seem to be directed towards me as a consumer. It seems like it would be the future of how Boy Bands will sound.

The Scotch Tape is most impressive in the release. It was a self-released album that was only released digitally and was successful. Without no support besides a YouTube channel and word of mouth Timeflies was incredibly successful.

I knew nothing about them besides the fact that my friends were very big fans of the band. I still don't like Timeflies, but they are successful and I am not. They have an audience that loves them and will continue to be successful, but I don't think they will ever become a huge pop hit. There success will pave the way for acts I do appreciate. For that they deserve kudos.

At the Drive-in - Relationship of Command

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Label: Grand Royal
Genre: Post-Hardcore
Year: 2000
Recommended by: Ryan Sullivan 

Relationship of Command is a huge album for the Aughts. As a high schooler with interest in the rock/emo scene you had to say you liked At the Drive-in. I really only liked the name, the music is better now than I remember at the time.

I put "One-Armed Scissor" on a lot of the mixed cd's I was making. When I was driving though it was one of the songs I often skipped over.

The record is good. It is not one that I often go back to myself, but considering it has been influential in a lot of the music I do love I respect it.

Jack Johnson - Brushfire Fairytales

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Label: Everloving
Genre: Folk Rock
Year: 2001
Recommended by: Sarah Sherry

I know this entire album by heart. It was released right before I went to high school. I remember listening to "Mud Football" on repeat one morning on vacation in the Grand Canyon of Pennsylvania. 

I had a pair of crappy headphones, a portable disc player, and Brushfire Fairytales. I walked around for about an hour from about 6 AM to 7 AM listening to one song on this album. One that I don't entirely love, but I think i was just sick of my family at the time and it was a song that illustrated the difference of moving from Middle School to a high school knowing many fewer people. I've still never really had a game of improptu football, but I still like the visualization.

I also enjoy "Inaudible Melodies" because a weird reference to Bruce Lee moving too quickly for the 30 FPS cameras to catch everything he was doing. The album itself is only good. It's not transcendent and many people can be annoyed by the Johnson's voice. It will always be important to me. No matter what I say about any album in any review, it always means more to the person who recommended it.

George Michael - Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 1

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Label: Columbia
Genre: Pop
Year: 1990
Recommended by: Marta Conlon

Man, 1990s pop is a thing. Each song is a poppy anthem. I was waiting for a song like "Wake Me Up" or "Faith", but they were kind of all just bummers. 

When people complain about pop music today, I will point them to this album to show them that pop music is pretty much always not the greatest. It's about being catchy and repeatable. Maybe Volume 2 has all the great hits.

Outkast - Stankonia

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Label: LaFace
Genre: Hip Hop
Year: 2000
Recommended by: Lauren Weidner

his album is so good. Again, the interludes in any album are useless and I hope never come back. If you want to put comedy out you can do it on so many different outlets now I hope that artist just take it to twitter or YouTube.

Nonetheless,  André 3000 and Big Boi bought their own studio and the result is that they have a different sound on each individual track. It keeps the album from having a consistency, but each is unique and wonderful in it's own right. "Ms. Jackson" was the biggest commercial success and "B.O.B." is the biggest critical success. The songs are amazingly different. "Ms. Jackson" sounds like an offspring from Prince and "B.O.B" (Bombs over Baghdad) sounds like Jimi Hendrix entered a rave.

The only issue is the music still seems misogynistic. There are tracks where it seems that they satirical take down the scene and they both have come out and said the impact that Hip Hop and the South have made in their interactions with women. That said, I love the song "We Luv Deez Hoez".  I'm just a hypocrit, so theirs that. 

The Ataris - So Long Astoria

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Label: Columbia
Genre: Pop Punk
Year: 2003
Recommended by: Stephen Weidner

I like The Ataris. I hate So Long Astoria. "Boys of Summer" was bad when Don Henley originally wrote it, the cover is still not good. 

I'm going to sound like a hipster, but End is Forever is The Ataris album you should listen to. It's songwriting is better, the music is more interesting, and Don Henley didn't write any of the songs.

The Ataris basically became the American Nickelback. They are an unoffensive capable band who can churn a few hits out there, but seem to be uninterested to say anything. Listen to End is Forever.

Uncle Tupelo - Still Feel Gone

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Label: Rockville Records
Genre: Alternative Country
Year: 1991
Recommended by: Chris Neseman

Jeff Tweedy is awesome. Any project that Tweedy is attached to will get my unwavering backing. Uncle Tupelo is no different.

While the genre is listed as alternative country, it differs greatly from alternative country in general.

Uncle Tupelo's first album No Depression was used as a nickname for alternative country in the 90's. Also, Rockville Records are scumbags and never paid Uncle Tupelo any royalties. You can now purchase with out feeling bad, as Uncle Tupelo has gotten the rights to their Rockville releases.

If I were to recommend any Jeff Tweedy, it would be a Wilco album, but listen to Uncle Tupelo it created an entire Genre of music. So it's important, and stuff.

 

Patrick Sweany - Every Hour is a Dollar Gone

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Label: Nine Mile Records
Genre: Southern Rock
Year: 2007
Recommended by: Todd Tompkins

Patrick Sweany's 2007 release sounds like it was released in the 70s. It is an out and out tribute to the glory days of southern rock. This was right after the success of the Kings of Leon. It was before the lead singer of Kings of Leon went crazy. While Kings of Leon was a mash-up of southern rock and the White Stripes, Patrick Sweany is more blues influenced with the riffs that always come in pairs. 

The guitar playing in the album is unabashedly the star it overshadows the rock stylings of Sweany's voice and the basic rhythm of the percussion. The song writing is only decent, but that is not the star of the album and great song writing would likely get lost in the Bluesy guitar and short scratchy bursts of the Sweany's Thorogood impression.  The record has a unique sound, even if the quality seems to be purposefully reduced, the music is fun and great for driving.

ABBA - The Album

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Label: Polar
Genre: Pop
Year: 1977
Recommended by: Blair Sherry

ABBA is a band that dominated and dictated the Pop music scene of the 1970s. This is their fifth studio album. You wonder why they would name their fifth release The Album. That's a silly question, because they released ABBA: The Movie at the same time.

Get your branding and marketing straight people. ABBA is a pop group that makes sugary sweet pop music that goes in clean and is easily digestible. It's ABBA and it's better than Mamma Mia.

Dan Wilson - Love Without Fear

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Label: +180 Records
Year: 2014
Genre: Folk Rock
Recommended by: Melissa Jarotkiewicz

Dan Wilson was the front man for Semi-Sonic. Dan Wilson wrote Adele's "Someone Like You". Dan Wilson is an acclaimed songwriter. I like Dan Wilson. I like his song writing. I just like it.

It isn't going to change my life, but it would be a lot better than the mall rock that currently plays in stores across America. If you are interested in great song writing and listening to great female vocalists Love Without Fear is a perfect album for you.

Dethklok - The Dethalbum

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Label: Williams Street
Year: 2007
Genre: Death Metal
Recommended by: Ryan Sullivan 

his "band" was created by Brandon Small for the Adult Swim cartoon Metalocalypse. The album is entertaining, if not a too strong for my taste. I don't listen to enough metal to catch which lyrics are satirical and which are just over the top to be funny.

It's enjoyable, but not as much fun as playing Thunderhorse on Guitar Hero.

Smoking Popes - Born to Quit

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Label: Johann's Face
Year: 1994
Genre: Pop Punk
Recommended by: Abe Martinez

This is the second Smoking Popes album that has been requested. I have to say I enjoyed both of them quite thoroughly, even though I enjoyed Get Fired just a touch more.

The internet says that the most popular song was "Need You Around", but I enjoy most of the other album tracks substantially more than that release. "My Lucky Day" is my favorite song hands down. An enjoyable listen that I am sure to revisit.

Os Mutantes - Os Mutantes

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Label: Polydor
Year: 1968
Genre: Tropicália
Recommended by: Paul Conant

Os Mutantes is a Brazilian band. They sound like a South American band. They also cover the Mamas and the Papas on this album. 

The album sounds very differenet and is a nice respite from a lot of the alternative rock, pop, and classic rock that seems to be on rotation.

However, it's too out there for me. I would recommend anyone to listen to it, especially "Tempo no Tempo".

Pearl Jam - Ten

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Label: Epic
Year: 1991
Genre: Grunge
Recommended by: Kirsten Turnqvist

This is an album in which I am very familiar. Early in my life my sister was collecting all of the Pearl Jam albums.

Now I've enjoyed Pearl Jam, but have never understood the cult-like mainstream status they have achieved. They are a more commercially successful Bruce Springsteen. They have their own satellite radio station! I mean "Even Flow" is pretty great. They continued to have more success, but I don't sense greatness out of any of their single albums. They are the Eddie Murray of the music industry. He played baseball for 21 years, was always good until the very end, and hit all the benchmarks for the Hall of Fame. There was never a single season you would say was amazing. Craig Biggio was the other baseball player I was going to use. Either way Ten is very enjoyable, it's familiar, and it's an EVEEEEEEENNNNNNN FLLLLLLLLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOW.

Chicago - Chicago Transit Authority

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Label: Columbia
Genre: Rock with Horns
Year: 1969
Recommended by: Jeff Sherry

Chicago claims to be "Rock with Horns". I believe that may be true on their later albums, but this is really Jazz and Blues with a slant towards rock. You can't be rock with horns and have every song be just under ten minutes.

Many of the songs just take too long to get where they are going with out redeeming itself by the end of the song. That is no reason not to like the album as a whole, but it makes it difficult to listen to it from beginning to end. You need to listen intently to get full enjoyment. I feel that way with every song, with one exception. "I'm a Man" is great. They it's not a Chicago original, but it works perfectly.

I'm surprised Chicago hasn't been sampled by more hip hop songs, although they have been plenty of times. Here is a fun new site to waste your time! It let's you know what samples are in every song.

Also, Chicago Transit Authority is a better name and the CTA should have just gotten over it.

Ariana Grande - My Everything

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Label: Republic
Genre: Pop
Year: 2014
Recommended by: Chris Heck

This is bubblegum pop. This is where pop is today. The EDM beats and a joyful woman singing on top of it. If you want it to hit a little harder you ask a popular rapper to come and drop a strong verse to make it sound much better.

There are a few songs that are enjoyable. The rest is a very sugary snack that feels like a Halloween's binge fest at the end of the record. However, I some how love the song "Bang Bang", its probably just the simple yet perfect chorus. 

Ice Cube - The Predator

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Label: EMI
Genre: West Coast Hip Hop, Gangsta Rap
Year: 1992
Recommended by: Marta Conlon

The Predator has Ice Cube's most famous song "It Was a Good Day". I'm going to skip over talking about that song, because it's really good, and it's used all the time.

The best song though is "Check Yo Self". It does a better illustration of West Coast Hip Hop with the funky 70s beat and contrasting flow that somehow fits perfectly. Even though Ice Cube's lyrics are bit strong and aggressive, the contrast with "Mustang Sally" allows you just follow along and get behind every word. Music is powerful.