Terça-feira 27 Jan 2015, 9h:21
As always, I’ll try to keep these even more terse than the best-of list.
Keep in mind: these are not necessarily bad albums (unless explicitly noted), just underwhelming ones or ones that did not make a big impression on me. And for some artists I just have such impossibly high standards that the album would easily land on the other list if someone else had made it…
Gaba Kulka – The Escapist (ecto)
I’ve listened to this album lots of times but would be lost if I had to recall a single song. Never a good sign.
Rating: 53/100
Best tracks
Lykke Li – I Never Learn (ecto)
Has a lot of songs that seem to drag on without going anywhere.
Rating: 47/100
Best tracks
As a vegan, hearing someone sing about something as gross as jerk ribs just pisses me off.
Rating: 40/100
Best tracks
Four very catchy songs but the other ones are downright annoying to listen to.
Rating: 35/100
Best tracks
It seems like not only the songs on this album but all the really annoying songs in this year’s “Not-so-great songs” list are similar in that they feature a failed attempt to be catchy when all they manage is to get on the listener’s nerves.
Rating: 44/100
Best tracks
I love her voice but am not big on the idea of reworking standards.
Rating: 48/100
Best tracks
Lots of hype for this album but way too experimental for me. It’s like the neon version of Right From Real.
Rating: 47/100
Best tracks
Mariah Carey – Me. I Am Mariah… The Elusive Chanteuse
Oh, how I wish she was more elusive. Why do people with great voices always ruin it by overproducing the tracks?
Rating: 36/100
Best tracks
Heavy (as in much bass, many hooks) pop songs. Not very memorable, sometimes a bit annoying.
Rating: 42/100
Best tracks
Judith Holofernes – Ein Leichtes Schwert
Witty lyrics but musically this leaves a lot to be desired when compared to Wir Sind Helden tracks.
Rating: 50/100
Best tracks
Miranda Lambert’s songs border on sugary-cheesy (much Like her musical siblings’ Shania Twain and Faith Hill) but when they don’t they’re the right amount of catchy.
Rating: 44/100
Best tracks
Actually not a bad record but I just had such incredibly high expectations after La Roux. That being said, the album is more even than its predecessor.
Rating: 53/100
Best tracks
While I like to listen to these songs for the lyrics and the novelty of something that’s not typically my taste, I can’t get myself to really like them.
Rating: 38/100
Best tracks
Not as good as the other Prince album this year. Sounds like stuff I’ve heard before but then forgot about.
Rating: 45/100
Best tracks
I’m sure I would have loved this when I was thirteen, which was when the first Guano Apes record came out but now I hear their songs as more noise than music. I sure have changed. At least it’s a lot better than Bel Air.
Rating: 43/100
Best tracks
I remember enjoying listening to this record but actually I don’t remember it much. Surely good enough for the dancefloor.
Rating: 46/100
Best tracks
Stevie Nicks – 24 Karat Gold – Songs From The Vault
Most of these songs probably should have stayed in the vault. The high rating is mostly due to the fact that I just love her voice.
Rating: 60/100
Best tracks
Just not very memorable. But fun.
Rating: 48/100
Best tracks
St. Vincent – St. Vincent (ecto)
I really want to like St. Vincent because she’s an amazing person but I have difficulty adjusting to the ever-changing musical concepts in each song. I think I’d need to give these songs a LOT more space to grow on me.
Rating: 47/100
Best tracks
Mary Chapin Carpenter – Songs From The Movie (ecto)
The sound reminds me a lot of Joni Mitchell’s orchestral versions of her songs (on Both Sides Now and Travelogue), which I liked. Still, I would probably like this album more (or maybe less?) if I knew the original versions of these songs.
Rating: 52/100
Best tracks
Bryan Adams – Tracks Of My Years
Another collection of “standards” (even though less standard than Bette Midler’s, Annie Lennox’ or Barbra Streisand’s). I’d rather hear new material.
Rating: 44/100
Best tracks
Meshell Ndegeocello – Comet, Come To Me (ecto)
The mellow songs on this album I like a lot. What I can’t stand is having to concentrate on different textures that don’t have a commonality. Maybe I’m special that way, but it’s extremely unnerving to me not knowing what direction the music is taking. May be some form of ADHD.
Rating: 45/100
Best tracks
I should just un-buy this record. There’s two hours of my life I’ll never get back.
Rating: 32/100
Best tracks
So apparently I only like Lea Michele when someone else chooses songs for her, like on Glee.
Rating: 42/100
Best tracks
I like concentrating on music but if I try to do that with this, it’ll just get on my nerves. If I can fade it into the background, fine.
Rating: 44/100
Best tracks
Lana Del Rey – Ultraviolence (ecto)
Very dark and moody and in dire need of a little bit of catchy melodies.
Rating: 52/100
Best tracks
Joan As Police Woman – The Classic (ecto)
The album seems to drag on forever.
Rating: 45/100
Best tracks
It’s like the new Damien Rice record meets the Damon Albarn record… and it ends badly.
Rating: 46/100
Best tracks
Pink Floyd – The Endless River
I love The Division Bell but to me the vocals do make a huge difference and they’re sorely lacking here. Hell, they could have used the computerized voice from Keep Talking on all tracks and I would have been happy.
Rating: 45/100
Best tracks
Tori Amos – Unrepentant Geraldines (ecto)
I’m on the fence with this one. I recall enjoying listening to Unrepentant Geraldines but I can’t think of another Tori Amos record that has left so few impressions here in my head after having been out for almost a year.
Rating: 50/100
Best tracks
These seem like covers for the sake of recognition, not covers because a new aspect could be added.
Rating: 42/100
Best tracks
Enrique Iglesias – Sex And Love
This really was dreadful to listen to. It seems this year many established artists took the easy route and released bland pop albums. Enrique Iglesias is one of the worst.
Rating: 35/100
Best tracks
(ecto)
The new songs are a tad too experimental for me. And the others have been out for years now.
Rating: 61/100
Best tracks
First Aid Kit – Stay Gold (ecto)
Good album but pales in comparison to The Lion’s Roar.
Rating: 61/100
Best tracks
Yet another collection of standards. Well-done but again, not really my taste.
Rating: 51/100
Best tracks
I really wanted to like this but it just feels so devoid of emotion that I have a hard time connecting.
Rating: 47/100
Best tracks
Lovely voice but cheesy renditions. Ask me for a more informed opinion when I’m in the mood for cheesy.
Rating: 47/100
Best tracks
Abgelatschte statt spitzfindige Texte.
Rating: 41/100
Best tracks
Mike Oldfield – Man On The Rocks
As is the case with many other albums on this list, I actually liked listening to this. But when I stop it, I forget about it immediately. So I’d say it’s me, not you, dear Mike. Then again, I’ve always liked your sister more than you.
Rating: 52/100
Best tracks
Most of the songs feel very cheap and aren’t even the least bit dance-able.
Rating: 40/100
Best tracks
Good idea, good execution, questionable song choices. Sometimes it pays off to showcase a song not everybody and their grandmother knows. Also they could have cut the number of songs in half.
Rating: 37/100
Best tracks
Robin Gibb – 50 St. Catherine’s Drive
Posthumously released album, not quite polished.
Rating: 35/100
Best tracks
Heidi Happy releases seem to get incrementally better but I’ve heard a lot of this already and would prefer a more radical innovation.
Rating: 50/100
Best tracks
Incremental updates here as well. Not that there’s anything wrong with that but it’s just not especially interesting.
Rating: 43/100
Best tracks
Just boring misogynist shit. Feminist my ass.
Rating: 35/100
Best tracks
Bruce Springsteen – High Hopes
Some songs have this earthly quality I so much love with male vocalists. But then again, the majority of songs just sounds like a big indistinct pudding.
Rating: 47/100
Best tracks
A cool pop album but, sadly, not much more.
Rating: 52/100
Best tracks
I get that the guy is an amazing guitar player but what I miss is the part where his riffs don’t annoy me. I did like the James Bond track he did with Alicia Keys.
Rating: 48/100
Best tracks
Bette Midler does the standards-thing a little bit better than Annie Lennox but not well enough that it doesn’t sound like songs you’ve heard a thousand times before.
Rating: 52/100
Best tracks
Solid Macy Gray record but the songs seem a bit bland.
Rating: 45/100
Best tracks
Tony Bennett & Lady Gaga – Cheek To Cheek
As I’ve now said a few times, I think classics have been done every which way and I don’t know why we need yet another version of Ev’ry Time We Say Goodbye. But as renditions go, these are fine.
Rating: 50/100
Best tracks
Eels – The Cautionary Tales Of Mark Oliver Everett
Way too many songs on this album. The sheer volume of Eels output in the recent years is mind-boggling. The failure to concentrate on the good ideas shows a bit. Like with my reviews. I should really cut down the number of albums I review and only include the ones worth mentioning.
Rating: 47/100
Best tracks
Willie Nelson – Band Of Brothers
I like Willie Nelson but listening to his songs can become very monotonous. Also most songs tend to be derogatory towards women (whom he calls “girls”).
Rating: 51/100
Best tracks
Christina Perri – Head Or Heart
Just sounds very bland and forgettable.
Rating: 46/100
Best tracks
Ani DiFranco – Allergic To Water (ecto)
Woe Be Gone is an amazing song but the rest of the album, sadly, seems rather uneven.
Rating: 53/100
Best tracks