245. Home is Where the Music Is - Hugh Masekela

I had, until this week, lived in a broadly Hugh Masekela-free world. I'm sure I'd heard his music, and his name was somehow familiar, but not to the extent that I could have told you anything about him.

It is worth reminding you that I don't really get Jazz; it is too abstract, and requires more devotion than I have thus far been willing to give it. However, I have found some Jazz artists accessible, and I would certainly put Hugh in this category. I may not be able to appreciate his technique and skill on the trumpet, but I can enjoy listening to him, admittedly primarily as a nice background ambience.

Part of a Whole has a nice tremulous feel to it, with flighty trumpet overlaying heavy, firm piano and ORGAN (CHECK)chords. Minawa has a nice dreamy element to it, but it is the Big Apple, with its brooding piano and skewering horns that most captures my attention. Blues for Huey tries to ruin the album with an interminable drum solo (genuine question - does anyone other than drummers ever enjoy a drum solo?).

This album does not make me feel any differently about Jazz, but it does make me appreciate that a world with Hugh MAsekela's music in it is better than one without. This may primarily be when I want some music that I will not fully engage with, and those moments are rare, but it is an option for those occasions. 

Chloe's album rating: 6
Chloe's favourite track: 9. Maesha 
Olly's album rating: 6
Olly's favourite track: 3. The Big Apple

Next week is 548. Cupid and Psyche 85 by Scritti Politti.

992. 21 - Adele

To follow up your stellar debut with an album that is bigger, bolder and even more emotionally wrought whilst still only 21 is quite the feat. 

Adele was ever present around the time of this release, but she the songs have undoubtedly stood the test of time - there is a depth there that means they go beyond being simple earworms. Adele's voice is powerful and all embracing, and the choice of instruments and backing singers merely add to the sense of it being a platform from which she can shine. Go back and listen to the big hits - the sparsity of instrumental variety is offset by the breadth of their sound, all knitting together under Adele's vocals.

Rolling in the Deep takes a simple, and quiet, piano chord progression, hand claps, and superb late 60s style backing call and response vocals, and turns it into an utterly engaging behemoth. Rumour Has It is built around a lovely bit of slap bass, hand claps (again), and a very simple drum beat, before some strings and piano add a bit of class on the bridge. The misses come in the shape of the overly sentimental One and Only, which isn't bad so much as simply failing to live up to the obscenely high standard of the other album tracks. 

This is an album I absolutely believe will stand the test of time - the standout tracks will be know word-for-word by people yet to be born, they really are that good. It isn't perfect, and certainly could be seen as slightly formulaic and overblown, but when heart-wrenching songs are this good, I'm ok with a bit of bombast.

Chloe's album rating: 7
Chloe's favourite track: 11. Someone Like You
Olly's album rating: 8
Olly's favourite track: 1. Rolling in the Deep

Next week we have 245. Home is Where the Music Is by Hugh Masekela.

855. The Fat of the Land - Prodigy

One of the first albums Chloe ever bought, and certainly one that I've always enjoyed, but hadn't heard in a while.

Any album with such well-known bangers as Firestarter, Breathe, and Smack my Bitch Up is always going to be known as a bit of a party album. However, it is the depth and complexity of the material that is so impressive, given that these songs have not only stood the test of time, but reveal subtle elements upon repeated listens. For example, the use of the phase effect on Smack my Bitch Up really adds further dynamism to such a lively track.

Diesel Power was a track that split us, with Chloe loving it, and me finding it a bit predictable. There are few other weak points, however, with tracks like Narayan having a lovely chord progression, and Mindfields always reminding me of that jaw-dropping first viewing of the Matrix. There is a level of variety to the album that I had not originally appreciated, and certainly one that few other dance albums can approach.

I enjoyed the album even more than I'd anticipated. Whilst it is not flawless, it rarely failed to put a spring in my step, and a smile on my face. It is the sort of album that anyone from my generation will have a soft-spot for, and and that is absolutely deserved given the quality shown throughout.

Chloe's album rating: 8

Chloe's favourite track: 3. Diesel Power

Olly's album rating: 8

Olly's favourite track: 1. Smack my Bitch Up

Next week we have 992. 21 by Adele.

74. The Psychedelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Elevators - The 13th Floor Elevators

I was introduced to the 13th Floor Elevators by the High Fidelity film. For those of you who haven't seen it (a plague upon thy houses), it opens with Rob, the protagonist, blasting out 'You're Gonna Miss Me' on his hifi as his girlfriend Laura walks out on him.

Ever since first hearing it, I have loved that track. There is a controlled anarchy about it, complete with ridiculous numbers and variety of instruments, all supporting the screeching and yelping of Roky Erickson.

The issue for me was that I don't really like Psychedelia. Having had a few of these albums as part of this project (The Electric Prunes, The Young Rascals), I just don't really get it. I can grasp that it was experimental, and groundbreaking when released, and certainly I don't doubt they influenced the Stones and Beatles for the better, but there are just too many elements in each song that don't add enough. For example, when I listen to the intricacies of a Pink Floyd or Joanna Newsom, I enjoy discovering melodies or effects I hadn't before, like peeling an intricate onion. With these bands, it seems that the discovering of an extra melody distracts from the overall enjoyment of the actual song. Chloe pointed out that every song on this album has a background noise that sounds like someone blowing bubbles, and when you notice it, it really is there all the bloody time.

This album is massively carried by that superb opening track. Whilst disappointing, it is a good enough track to let me partially forgive the band, and simply enjoy it in its own right.

Chloe's album rating: 5

Chloe's favourite track: 1. You're Gonna Miss Me

Olly's album rating: 6

Olly's favourite track: 1. You're Gonna Miss Me

Next week is 855. The Fat of the Land by Prodigy.

670. I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got - Sinead O'Connor

Ok, this has Nothing Compares 2 U on it; I know that's the first thing you were thinking. It was also the first thing that I thought too.

When O'Connor's political statements hit the mark, they really are powerful. Her anti-Police 'Black Boys on Mopeds' hasn't aged at all over the last twenty nine years, with a chorus that deserves to be better known, and a remarkably well structured tone to the lyrics. The Prince-penned classic is clearly a stand out on the album, and deservedly so; it's a track that really doesn't diminish even after multiple listens. Indeed, the only issue I have with the song is the bizarre use of abbreviations in the title.

Released in 1990, the album combines some rather 'of their time' sound effects alongside O'Connor's timeless voice. The overwhelming reverb and quiet-loud-quiet structure of The Last Days of our Acquaintance are absolute staples of the era. Whilst this generally works better than I would have anticipated, there are definitely some misses here; Jump in the River is a poor Blondie pastiche, and The Emperor's New Clothes doesn't do enough with what sounds like a tasty guitar line; presumably the focus is on keeping O'Connor's voice very high in the mix.

Overall, this album was pretty good, but doesn't take O'Connor much higher in my estimation, as it lacks the consistency of a really great album.

Chloe's album rating: 7

Chloe's favourite track: 6. Nothing Compares 2 U

Olly's album rating: 7

Olly's favourite track: 6. Nothing Compares 2 U

Next week is 74. The Psychedelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Elevators by the 13th Floor Elevators.

901. Felt Mountain - Goldfrapp

Alison Goldfrapp's voice was near ubiqitous in the late 90s and early 2000s, yet it was more the singles that drove my knowledge of her. I was expecting a slightly samey, Portishead-light album, without a lot of variety.

It turns out my instincts were pretty much spot on. The vocals are excellent, unsurprisingly, although they sometimes lapse into being slightly breathy. There are some strong moments on the album, such as Human, where the electronica and strings interplay nicely, and Pilots has the sense of being wrapped in a cashmere blanket, and left to float over a moonlit lagoon. Those slight outliers however, are just the better versions of a similar theme - slow, stripped back beats, with tinny yet mellow percussion, and languid strings. Many of the songs merge into each other, and are frankly forgettable even after multiple listens. Deer Stop and Horse Tears, for example, sound like every single perfume advert soundtrack you've ever heard.

I'm not a huge Trip-hop fan, if this even falls in this category, and I struggle to really see why someone would say this album stands out against others of the same genre. Yes, Goldfrapp's voice is good, but it's not exactly genre-defining, or even defying, and the other musical elements seem to lack something that sets them apart - it just feels a bit 'by-numbers'.

Chloe's album rating: 4

Chloe's favourite track:

Olly's album rating: 4

Olly's favourite track: 8. Utopia

Next week we have 670. I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got by Sinead O'Connor.

853. Supa Dupa Fly - Missy Elliott

I wasn't really sure what to expect from this album; I'd really only come across the odd single and guest vocal from Missy "Misdemeanor" Elliott. I knew that she was more interesting than your average rapper, but couldn't have told you why.

Interestingly, the first rapper you hear on the album is Busta Rhymes, and I was a bit concerned that this could be an album where 'feat' dominates the sound - thankfully that is not the case. Hit Em Wit Da Hee is soulful, and the interplay between Lil' Kim and Missy is great, with some beautiful harmonies against a soft yet crisp beat. Sock It 2 Me takes it up a notch, with an epic feel to the soundscape. Even songs I don't particularly like, such as Friendly Skies, sound fantastic, and that song sounds like a pre-cursor to eponymous-era Beyonce.

Thankfully the album does away with the curse of 'skits' that seem to dominate so much Hip-hop of this era, and the interludes here almost pass as songs in their own right. The album does lose momentum slightly towards the end, with the slow beat, soft instrumental approach ending up a bit samey to my ears - the beats on Best Friends and Why You Hurt Me are pretty similar for example.

One thing worth noting about this album is how high the production values are; it really benefits from listening to it on a decent sound system. And Missy's voice is superb; whether rapping or crooning on a chorus, there is a really soulful edge to her delivery.

Chloe's album rating: 6

Chloe's favourite track: 4. The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly)

Olly's album rating: 7

Olly's favourite track: 3. Sock It 2 Me

Next week is 901. Felt Mountain by Goldfrapp.

961. Want Two - Rufus Wainwright

I always get the Wainwrights confused, struggling to recall which ones are old timers, and which ones are new. That's the difficulty with singer-songwriters who major on acoustic guitar; they are timeless, in the best and worst sense of the word. To assist you, Rufus is young(ish), with this album being released in 2004 - Loudon, his father, is the old-timer, and Martha is Rufus's younger sister. There, Wainwright family tree done (yes, I know Rufus's mother is also a singer-songwriter, but her surname is different).

The opening is about as dense a start to a solo album as you can expect - not many artists would go for an epic, reverb-fuelled cover of Agnus Dei. It is more straight forward (on the whole) from then on, with The One You Love a very rhythm driven pop song, and Little Sister a harpsichord and string-driven song of mourning - Ok, so it's not really that straight forward. Indeed, it is the complexity and ambition of this album that sets it apart from others. Lyrically it is also bold, Gay Messiah is a vivid, yet highly compelling, depiction of Jesus' second coming as a voracious homosexual; I'm sure the church enjoyed that one.

The main thing that struck me about this album was how like Thom Yorke Rufus sounds. It isn't all the time, but when you notice it, it is hard to ignore. Further to this, one track sounds distractingly like Elbow, and that made it hard to focus on the music in and of itself for the first few days.

When I did, I ended up really enjoying the album. It wasn't too cool for me, as I'd first thought, it just took a while to work as a cohesive whole for me. That isn't to say there aren't weak tracks, but the overall overshadows these occasional misses. The sublime Art Teacher, which is as fine a capturing of youthful infatuation as has ever been captured, still has space for some witty observations; that's pretty impressive.

Chloe's album rating: 7
Chloe's favourite track: 8. Gay Messiah
Olly's album rating: 7
Olly's favourite track: 5. The Art Teacher

Next Week is 853. Supa Dupa Fly by Missy Elliott.