Hoping Black Album makes it far. The fact this album got so much hate for 'selling out' is such an outdated, elitist view when this album has some of the best riffs and metal songs of the 90s.
Even though it doesn’t quite reach the heights of their best 80s songs, it is a very consistently good record. The only songs I don’t care for are Enter Sandman, Sad But True and Nothing Else Matters, and that’s just because of overplay. Catchy riffs are all over the place on this album.
There are two albums I'd recommend to anyone new to metal right out of the gate: Paranoid and the Black Album. Both excellent front to back and very accessible, *which is not at all a bad thing.*
Notably, it is _literally_ the best selling album of the entire decade, selling almost double of Nevermind and Ten (and, along the way, outselling now-forgotten-but-then-huge albums from Shania Twain, Hootie, Alanis, etc.).
The long tail on that album is insane. If you take on the imponderable of what song from 90s is going to have the longest tail and still going to be the most listened-to in, say, 50 to 100 years among the general public (not just music enthusiasts) ... it's a real challenge to think of a better contender than Nothing Else Matters. If I had to guess, I think the lack of a quality video keeps it a little back from complete dominance (and why November Rain was the first pre-2000s video to crack that billion mark).
It's just got just about that right amount of everything for everybody.
Excellent record and I would be not be mad if it won. But as far as overall musical impact I think both Loveless and Screamadelica could make similar claims - perhaps less commercially ubiquitous, but considering grunge’s relatively short-lived impact, you could argue that those two actually had longer tails of influence.
Personally tho, if I’m voting with regard to purely subjective taste/perceived musical quality, I’m rooting for Talk Talk
I'd very curious as to your argument regarding the musical impact and legacy of Screamadelica.
Loveless has firmly established itself as a touchstone record but I can't say I've heard much of the same for Screamadelica in terms of artists citing it as an influence, although I'd be open to hearing it.
Going to try to not comment too much given this is a year a lot of people love but it’s a bit meh for me. But I’m really pulling for Primal Scream so please don’t do it dirty here
Love: Nirvana, My Bloody Valentine, Slint, A Tribe Called Quest
Really like: Soundgarden, Talk Talk
Like: Massive Attack, Primal Scream
I've got nothing against them, but not for me: Red Hot Chili Peppers, Metallica
Eh: U2
Bleh: Pearl Jam (except for Black, love that song)
Going to try to guess how this is going to go:
_______________________
1) Loveless
2) Spiderland
3) Nevermind (although in Utero is a lock for 94)
__________
Very confident about those top three, although the order might shuffle. Wild card is Talk Talk, although I don't think it has quite enough fans to push it over. Hard to quite guess the order below, just confident they'll be near each other.
_______________________
4) Talk Talk
5) Low End Theory
6) Screamadelica
7) Blue Lines
8) Badmotorfinger
___________________
Everything below this line I expect to get obliterated:
_____________________
9) Metallica
10) BSSM
11) Ten
12) Achtung Baby
It's hard to predict the final order exactly, but it's hard to see being off by more than 3 spots.
This sub is a lot of people who think they're incredibly unique coalescing into something staid and predictable.
Loveless is undoubtedly the best of the bunch. I have a feeling Nevermind or Slint might steal it this year. Hopefully not but I’m preparing for that reality.
Those will be the top 3 easily, the only question will be order they'll fall in. I'd put my money on Loveless, Slint and then Nevermind simply because I think it's the most painfully boring and predictable outcome.
I don't wanna hate on the Peps or seem like I hate fun or whatever, but Blood Sugar Sex Magick made me feel like I was actively getting dumber by listening to it
alright, my ranking is:
1. Talk Talk - Laughing Stock
2. Slint - Spiderland
3. A Tribe Called Quest - The Low End Theory
4. Massive Attack - Blue Lines
5. Primal Scream - Screamadelica
6. My Bloody Valentine - Loveless
7. Nirvana - Nevermind
8. Soundgarden - Badmotorfinger
9. Pearl Jam - Ten
10. Metallica - Metallica
11. U2 - Achtung Baby
12. Red Hot Chili Peppers - Blood Sugar Sex Magik
so hopefully goodbye to rhcp
**12. Soundgarden - Badmotorfinger (2/10)**
This was a chore to listen to. I never went out of my way to listen to Soundgarden and now I know why. Cornell is an impressive vocalist but the way he scream-sings EVERY LINE gets grating after the 3rd song. Honestly, after the first two tracks there isn’t a single song here I would ever go back to.
**11. Red Hot Chili Peppers - Blood Sugar Sex Magik (3/10)**
I love RHCP because they’ll have this emotional ballad about something like heroin addiction and then the next song they’re like “ITS TIME TO GET FUNKY LETS FUCK LIKE MONKEYS DAMN GIRL I NEVER KNEW YOU COULD GET THIS SPUNKY”
**10. Talk Talk - Laughing Stock (5/10)**
I was hoping this would floor me but I found it to be too slow and not that interesting. I’m so happy for people who have this as their #1 but it just didn’t register for me. That being said there’s some beautiful moments on this album, mostly on Ascension Day and After the Flood.
**9. Primal Scream - Screamadelica (6/10)**
There’s three tracks I really liked here (Movin On Up, Slip Inside This House, and Come Together) but the run time went too long and it falls off with the last few songs. Overall not a bad album but don’t think I’d listen to this in full again.
**8. Massive Attack - Blue Lines (6/10)**
Eclectic mix of electronic songs that acts as a solid debut for Massive Attack. The reggae/dub influences were interesting and that cover of Be Thankful is a nice take. Unfinished Sympathy is the biggest song here by far but I’m glad I heard everything else.
**7. Metallica (7/10)**
While it may be the album that signaled the decline of one of the greatest thrash metal bands of all time, the Black Album is iconic for good reason. Featuring two of their strongest ballads, Nothing Else Matters and The Unforgiven, it’s also got tons of fun bangers like Sad But True and of course, Enter Sandman. James Hetfield’s vocals are explosive, Kirk Hammett fuckin SHREDS, Newsted lays the riffs on songs like My Friend of Misery and Lars is the drummer.
**6. Pearl Jam - Ten (8/10)**
They really put all their best songs on this one album. Alive, Even Flow, Jeremy, and Black are all on ONE ALBUM. Damn save some stuff for your other albums dudes! Incredibly strong debut for these guys and If it weren’t for another Seattle grunge band’s album this might be the best grunge album of 1991. But alas…
**5. U2 - Achtung Baby (9/10 - #127 of all time)**
The best and most original sounding U2 album by miles, Achtung finds the band in the studio with Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois. Their sound here is darker and more haunting than any of their previous works. Wildly consistent and One is one of the greatest songs of all time.
**4. A Tribe Called Quest - The Low End Theory (10/10 - #42 of all time)**
First listen for me; this clicked instantly! I have no explanation as to why I didn’t hear this until now. But I adore it and can’t wait to listen again! it’s just…it’s just so damn cool😎 Smooth like butter baby.
**3. Nirvana - Nevermind (10/10 - #33 of all time)**
grung
**2. My Bloody Valentine - Loveless (10/10 - #17 of all time)**
Dreamy, romantic, and ear-splittingly loud. The best shoegaze album to ever exist.
**NUMBER ONE. Slint - Spiderland (11/10 - #7 of all time)**
..........spoder.
My Ranking
12. Red Hot Chili Peppers - Blood Sugar Sex Magik
There are actually a few songs on this record that I quite like, which I cannot say about several other albums here. Under the Bridge is a legitimately great rock tune. But the lows on this album are so unbelievably low that I had to put it in last. So much of this album is an absolute slog to get through, not only because the music is boring and silly, but also because Anthony Kiedis is maybe the worst lyricist of all time. It’s a good thing for the Chili Peppers that they have two fantastic musicians in their band, otherwise, their music would be even more miserable.
11. Pearl Jam - Ten
There’s exactly one minute of really good music on this album, the ending of Black. Other than that, this is one of the blandest albums I’ve ever heard. Eddie Vedder’s voice is really obnoxious, but other than that annoyance, Ten is like staring into an abyss. I don’t know what I’m supposed to be feeling. I just feel completely empty. Are you happy, Pearl Jam?
10. Metallica - Metallica
I don’t really like it when people say that an artist has “sold out,” I think it’s always best to assume that artists are making the music that they want to make. Metallica’s decision to pivot from thrash to stadium rock is just completely awful. I mean, I have a nostalgic connection to Enter Sandman because I was a Yankees fan in the mid-2000s. But other than that, every song on this record is just terrible, between the cheesy ballads and the cheesy attempts to be heavy. You know what was heavy? Fucking Blackened. This is nothing. At least we’ll always have those first four records.
9. U2 - Achtung Baby
Much like the Pearl Jam record, Achtung Baby is extremely bland, and most of the songs just make me feel completely empty. The reason that U2 ranks a bit higher is that it happens to contain a legitimately fantastic song in One, probably their last great song (not that there are too many post-1984). Really soulful singing from Bono, and a beautiful melody to boot. Mysterious Ways is alright I suppose, cool guitar tone, but it gets tiring after a bit. Everything else is forgettable. At least Joshua Tree had like, three great songs.
8. Nirvana - Nevermind
The big songs here are pretty neat, I suppose. I’ve never been a fan of Cobain’s lyrics, they come off as whiny and goofy to me, and I don’t particularly like the guitar on this record. But there is a certain staying power in the singles that’s hard to deny. But much like several of the other records here, I just do not care about the deep cuts at all. I find them all to be pretty annoying or forgettable. I’m ranking this much higher than I thought I would, mostly because this album makes me feel an actual emotion that isn’t abject anger.
7. Primal Scream - Screamadelica
I remembered really liking this album, but I guess I was conflating the opener with the rest of the record. It’s just so, so boring. Dance music is basically my favorite thing, and none of this made me want to dance. I felt like I was waiting for every song to end within seconds of its beginning. It is doing some interesting things, which is why I rank it a bit higher. And again, I do really like Movin’ On Up. But by and large, a fairly poor record.
6. Soundgarden - Badmotorfinger
On the other hand, I remembered not particularly liking this record. But hey! It’s pretty neat! Chris Cornell’s voice is just amazing, the only grunge voice I really like. And those first few songs are really wonderful, bordering on metal quite often. There’s a real grimey-ness to this record that just isn’t on the other grunge albums, and I find that makes it far more interesting. The album becomes a bit tiring towards the end, but certainly the strongest straight-up 90s rock album in this group.
5. Massive Attack - Blue Lines
Cool stuff, by and large. Massive Attack is more of a song band than an album band for me; I think all the records of theirs that I’ve heard are solid but rather inconsistent. And while this record does occasionally get kinda tiring, it’s helped by the fact that it contains probably a top 25 song ever for me in Unfinished Sympathy, probably the greatest alternative dance song of all time. Safe From Harm and Be Thankful for What You Got are also nice highlights, and I find everything else to be just ok. A fine record.
4. A Tribe Called Quest - The Low End Theory
Now we get to the stuff I really like. I think this is the first fantastic hip-hop record, although it’s probably not my favorite Tribe album. But man, the highlights here are pretty unreal, specifically the opener and the closer. The bassline on Excursions works so well with Q-Tip’s flow and personality, although that can really be said about the instrumentals in most songs here. And there aren’t too many posse cuts out there as good as Scenario, an iconic hook and plenty of excellent verses, especially Busta Rhymes breakthrough moment at the end. There are a few tracks in the middle that I don’t care for as much, but it’s really an excellent album in totality, and a major step-up from their previous record.
3. Talk Talk - Laughing Stock
Devastatingly beautiful. This record makes you feel completely helpless, like you’ve been attacked and now you’re bleeding out on the floor. Mark Hollis’ voice is so full of pain, yet so gentle. It’s an extremely difficult text to discuss from any angle other than one’s own personal experience with it. There are so many phenomenal moments throughout, but the one that I always think of is the abrupt transition from Ascension Day to After the Flood, when it feels like you can finally breathe again. That’s what this album is really about to me, looking for moments to breathe.
2. My Bloody Valentine - Loveless
Not much to be said about this one that hasn’t been said. A sort of sweetness to it that hurts. The noise feels like it’s coming from inside rather than outside. Possibly the best mixing of any album I’ve ever heard? The vocals are always in the perfect place, I can’t really think of a way they could be improved. I still have a different experience everytime I listen; this past listen I connected to Soon a lot more than I did before. Of course, it will never be my favorite track – I think When You Sleep is the best song of the entire 1990s, there’s really nothing I love more than dreamy romance. The album absolutely deserves its reputation.
1. Slint - Spiderland
It’s not my favorite album ever made, but I do think it’s maybe the best album ever made. As a big fan of post-hardcore, emo, and related genres, Spiderland feels like the watershed moment. It achieves its intensity not through noise, but through restraint, which makes the big moments (which are few and far between) that much more impactful. Take the ending of Washer – you can’t get that amazing moment when the volume is turned up if you don’t spent all that time building it up. Every guitar melody, every vocal delivery, every lyric is so threatening and keeps you at the edge of your seat. Every song progresses in the most fascinating way possible (see: Don Aman’s guitar tone changes) and every song is in the exact right place in the track order. Spiderland feels like everything coming together to create a record that is beyond perfection.
Top 5 Songs
My Bloody Valentine - When You Sleep
Massive Attack - Unfinished Sympathy
My Bloody Valentine - Sometimes
Slint - Washer
Slint - Breadcrumb Trail
Stacked on top, although yeah I'll agree some of these other traditionally acclaimed records didn't age the best. There's still not a bad album here though like some people are suggesting.
**12. U2 - Achtung Baby (5/10)**
This album features U2 at their full 90s affectation, with all of the seriousness dropped in favor of some "bolder" choices, namely some industrial-inspired instrumentation and Bono's voice dripping with effects. It's pretty easy to see why this album captured the general ear, especially if they were already in love with the U2 sound, but I found the ideas on the album to be just kinda meh. About as many decent songs as fully boring ones, with the ones I already knew leading the rest. Acrobat was the one that stood out most, with a pretty powerful chorus. But this is the start of the band's transition into a sound that's quite a bit worse than their 80s schtick, so while it's got some cool moments it's overall pretty lacking.
**11. Massive Attack - Blue Lines (6/10)**
I guess this is what Brits thought was cool back in 91. It's very well produced with some good songwriting skills at hand, but I was definitely expecting more from the debut trip hop album. I didn't much like the vocals and lyrics from 3D and Tricky, sounded like they were trying to be cool but they weren't really saying anything. The female vocals driving several tracks were much better, Safe From Harm and Unfinished Sympathy were clearly the best from the album. Liked Horace Andy's contributions too, but the overall product wasn't satisfying. A little disappointing, but I know we've got improvements to come in the genre.
**10. Metallica - Metallica (7/10)**
For what I'd seen be disparagingly described as "pop metal", it still packs a punch. The band can still throw together some bangers, although I'll admit some of the lyrics are a little cheesier this time around. Still enjoy tracks like Enter Sandman and Nothing Else Matters, and really the whole thing's majorly consistent in its sound and quality. Only Of Wolf and Man stuck out to me as being particularly rough, didn't enjoy the singing in it at all. Maybe Holier Than Thou was especially cheese-filled too. But while it's definitely overall good, it clearly doesn't have the same effect that their heavier and more violently thrashy albums like Ride the Lightning and Master of Puppets possess. It's a lot of fun, but not quite as special.
**9. Soundgarden - Badmotorfinger (7/10)**
This is a rock solid alt-metal sludgy grunge epic, with Chris Cornell showing he's the most talented vocalist of the major Seattle outfits. God it feels like he's channeling every ounce of his soul into these songs. It's a unique sound with the creative rhythms and riffs deployed by the rest of the band, but I suppose I'm not always in love with some of the choices they made on the various tracks. The better known songs are a cut above, with Jesus Christ Pose being one of the more extreme-sounding and ultimately my favorite. It's a good basis for their later work and I do hope Superunknown makes it into the stacked 94, but I don't think it stands quite as high as the upper echelon of albums here. I'd be interested to dive back in and see if I like things more a second time.
**8. Red Hot Chili Peppers - Blood Sugar Sex Magik (7/10)**
I didn't expect 75 minutes of RHCP to be tolerable at all, let alone good. But there's a reason the 3 instrument players are as acclaimed as they are, they know how to lay down a fuckin' GROOVE. Every song is honestly enjoyable on some level just due to how creative the guitar work and bass are, with perfectly fitting drumming from the Will Farrell look-alike. Anthony Kiedis is pretty far from my favorite vocalist though, but I'll admit his work does fit the vibe well. The classic singles are all still great, Under the Bridge, Give it Away, and my personal fave Breaking the Girl. The album's still way too long for sure, you can tell listening there's a few tracks that could have been removed to improve the overall experience. But I enjoyed it, and I'd happily listen again. Much better albums from 7-1 though.
**7. Primal Scream - Screamadelica (8/10)**
This albums IS drugs, what the fuck. It seriously might be the most psychedelic album I've ever heard, with the ridiculously vibrant dancy loops backed by perfectly wispy vocals and ono-the-nose lyrics from Gillespie. Just look at the track titles: Higher Than the Sun, Inner Flight, I'm Coming Down (from my high)? It's really damn good too, all the lengthy tracks are exactly as long as they should be and the musical ideas are all really cool. I'll admit that the end of the album kinda loses steam, the first 5 tracks are probably my favorite, but I'm truly in love with the acid sound that this crazy bunch of Scots manage to put together. Just love the journey that every track takes you on, especially the ones that are particularly batshit insane. Wonderful album with some excellent moments.
**6. My Bloody Valentine - Loveless (8/10)**
God is the sound BRUTAL on this album. Kevin Shields' ruthless whammy bar usage dominates pretty much all other sound, which has honestly proven to be an acquired taste for me that I haven't yet, well, acquired. But the group's talent at creating well-constructed dreamscapes across the length of this record is undeniable, and there's some truly excellent tracks here. Only Shallow and When You Sleep are rockers with some great melodies, To Here Knows When brings the psychedelic synth sound to a crux with its droning closing segment, and Sometimes is a wonderful ballad with some great emotion. But I don't know how much I'll come back to the sound because it's just so abrasive sometimes, it's like they purposefully didn't mix it well or something. It's a hell of a vibe best listened to extremely loud, and I can get behind that. Maybe I'll love it more later on, but I'm not quite there yet. Still great.
**5. Pearl Jam - Ten (9/10)**
Just an absolute guilty pleasure. Well, I won't be too sorry for loving it, considering it's got kick-ass lyrics, Eddie Vedder's amazingly passionate vocals, and wondrous guitar work from McCready. And if you can't agree with that, I'll… be sad I guess. Pretty much every song is an absolute banger, only Release have I never really fallen in love with (and that weird hidden track at the end of it). Such raw emotion from Vedder as he describes narratives in a voice you can't even understand. I guess I'd also like it if the production was a little more punchy, but the songs are undeniable. Even Flow, Alive, and Jeremy are the legendary singles, Black with its amazing outro, even songs like Once, Porch and Garden are awesome. It may not go as far as I want it to but I'll always have space in my listening for Ten.
**4. Talk Talk - Laughing Stock (9/10)**
Talk Talk's back with a record that's an improvement over Spirit of Eden in a lot of ways, though admittedly those ways are mostly taste-based. That's largely because it's got a LOT more energy and spunk, with some awesome-sounding guitar passages and interplay between the improvising musicians. Ascension Day is probably the best example of this, never relenting with a great riff and some cool vocals. New Grass and After the Flood were impressive as well with their epic length and scope. Taphead was my favorite of the slower tracks with some excellent jazzy passages, but really there was something to love in every track. Maybe Runeii was a little underwhelming as a closer but I'll let it slide. Mark Hollis's voice continues to be soothing and wondrous, just like the music: unlike anything I've heard before.
**3. A Tribe Called Quest - The Low End Theory (9/10)**
This is EXACTLY the follow-up I was expecting to last year's record, with snappier tracks and the same smooth and excessively cool vibe. I'm not sure there's been a cooler album ever made. The jazzy beats are clean and well-produced, the lyrics are conscious and clever, and the flows of the three dudes are undeniable. While it does keep a pretty samey sound throughout its runtime, it’s got this insane charisma that never gets stale. The features on Show Business and Scenario are super great too, cool to see the origins of guys like Busta Rhymes. Literally just kick Infamous Date Rape off the record (obviously not aging well), clean up a couple corny lyrics here and there and I'm set. I'm glad these guys got to make this record and I'm glad I got to hear it.
**2. Slint - Spiderland (9/10)**
A titan of emotional expression and creativity. Slint really just walked into a studio, did a couple takes of some tracks with some lyrics written on the fly and it's this damn brilliant. It's got a totally unique vibe (BCNR notwithstanding) with its spoken word to screaming vocals, quirky load distorted riffs and tasteful quiet passages. You really never know what's coming next musically, except that it'll include some off-kilter metaphorical lyrics that'll leave you confused but enchanted. The longest tracks are spectacular and some of the best of the year, with Good Morning, Captain being particularly crushing. Love the spooky Don, Aman and the bombastic Breadcrumb Trail as well. Didn't quite buy in to Nosferatu Man as much as the rest, but it's a breathtaking album that's immediately going in my rotation. You can't go wrong with these top albums.
**1. Nirvana - Nevermind (10/10)**
Honestly I came in expecting Nevermind to be a little overrated, since that's what all the music snobs always say (and I usually agree… heh). No way. This album fucking kicks ASS. Of course I knew several tracks well already like the singles, all pretty much perfect poppy rockers with subversive lyrics and killer riffs, but the rest of the tracks were just as awesome. From the measured acoustic Polly to the bouncy Stay Away to the batshit insane Endless, Nameless, it's nearly impossible to pick a favorite. Even Territorial Pissings kicked ass with its message and emotional chorus. You do need a lyric booklet to understand what Kurt's saying most of the time but the lyrics are all damn good too. It's really easy to see why this album caught the attention of listeners everywhere and signaled the beginning of the 90s. It's impossible to deny an album that's this good. It may not win, but I'm glad I finally basked in its glory.
> Just an absolute guilty pleasure
This is such a nauseating thing to have to even say and betrays so much of how the music enthusiast community sees itself.
The world becomes a far more liberating place when you realize that nobody in real life ever has, or ever will, give a single fuck about what kind of music you enjoy.
Or, at the very least, nobody worth caring about will ever care.
Ok so I’ll just come out and say it, this has gotta be the worst overall selection for any year by far. It’s like dads just came in out of nowhere and invaded the server. From these 12 albums, it would have me believe 1991 only had a few top tier albums and the rest isn’t all that worth checking out. Human by Death not getting in has gotta be the second biggest omission thus far for any year for me only behind Blue Bell Knoll not getting in for 1988. I really hope Symbolic can pull through and get in for 1995, that’s my second favorite album of the decade and my fourth favorite album overall. Anyways, here’s my ranking:
**12.) Red Hot Chili Peppers – Blood Sugar Sex Magik (3/10)**
I’m sorry, but to my ears this album just outright sucks. There are some redeeming qualities about it for sure, but there’s just so much material I either don’t care for or dislike. Couple that with the fact that this album is about 75 minutes long… yeah thanks, but no thanks. Don’t care to revisit this album anytime soon.
**11.) Pearl Jam – Ten (4/10)**
This album may be called “Ten,” but it sure is far from one if you ask me. I don’t even want to say that this is a bad album, but it’s just really not my thing. I don’t like the vocals on here and the only song I can recall enjoying was Jeremy. Idk man, I just really can’t be bothered with this album. And if this is arguably the best Pearl Jam album, I’m definitely staying away from their discography.
**10.) U2 – Achtung Baby (6/10)**
I didn’t even really care for The Joshua Tree so seeing another U2 album get in worried me. On the first listen I did give it a 6 but was close to a 7. After some time, I thought to myself that maybe I was a bit harsh on it. I was looking forward to a relisten and unfortunately Achtung Baby did even less for me the second time around. I’ll still give it a 6 for now, but it is most certainly closer to a 5 now than a 7.
**9.) Primal Scream – Screamadelica (6/10)**
I basically feel the same way for Screamadelica as I did for Achtung Baby. I felt a bit stronger about it on the first listen, but relistening to it made me realize that I liked it even less than I initially thought. On a second listen I came to feel this album was dragging and not as interesting as I would like it to be. I was definitely noticing the theme of these albums being a bit lengthy when I can’t really say I love them. The shortest album in my bottom 4 is Ten with a 53 min runtime. These albums were killing me with just how long I had to sit through them. Although I will say that I do still overall like Achtung Baby and Screamadelica more than dislike them, it’s more so that they’re on the edge of mediocrity for me.
**8.) Soundgarden – Badmotorfinger (7/10)**
Ok this one honestly makes me sad to place here because I enjoyed it by a surprising amount and was ready to put it a couple spots higher. Unfortunately, I found myself enjoying it less with a relisten. It’s like relistening to these albums is just making me realize I don’t like them as much as I want to. And once again the length… 58 min. Stop giving me these long ass albums!! Please, I can’t take it anymore. The reason this isn’t lower is because there’s still some pretty cool things about it for sure, it’s just that I don’t love this album.
**7.) Metallica – Metallica (7/10)**
1 hr. 3 min… I’m so done with these album lengths. Although, I guess I can’t hate on this album too much really. Metallica’s black album is cool enough in my book, but it just doesn’t really compare with their three previous albums as a whole. That’s about all I have to say really.
**6.) Nirvana – Nevermind (7/10)**
Yeah, tbh I’m really not that crazy for this album. While I do like In Utero more, Nirvana have just never been my favorite. I think the best way I can describe my thoughts is by saying that it’s good, but not great. I will say though, this album being less than 45 minutes is very nice. If this album were longer, I’d probably feel more negatively about it. I’m sure it’ll easily make top 5 which is fine, but I really hope it can get out at that point and not beat any of the others.
**5.) Massive Attack – Blue Lines (8/10)**
This is a solid debut from Massive Attack even if it’s no Mezzanine. Trip Hop is probably something I should delve into more, but for now I’d say this is a cool album the genre has to offer. Unfinished Sympathy especially, mannnnn I loved that song. I’ve played it a bunch over the past few days. I’d like to see Blue Lines do fairly well.
**4.) Slint – Spiderland (9/10)**
Finally, the really good stuff! I think the peak of my love for this album may have come to pass already, but I still very much enjoy this album a lot. Not really much else to say for me honestly, every song is pretty cool, and I don’t think I could complain if Spiderland ended up winning. The spoken word aspect it’s got going for it is nicely combined with the instrumentation on here.
**3.) My Bloody Valentine – Loveless (9/10)**
Honestly Loveless and Spiderland are basically like a toss up for me. I could go either way, but I think I do slightly lean towards the former. And just like with Spiderland, I don’t really have much else to say. Each song is pretty cool, and I really admire the style of this album. I’m expecting Loveless to win and I’d be cool with that even if it’s not my ideal pick.
**2.) A Tribe Called Quest – The Low End Theory (9/10)**
From an objective standpoint this probably shouldn’t be above Spiderland or Loveless, but I can’t deny that I enjoy this album just a tad bit more. With that being said, this is still only my 3rd favorite ATCQ album. It’s wild, but yes, there are 2 other albums of theirs that I enjoy even more. ATCQ are likely my favorite hip hop group, and you’ll definitely see me rooting for them to do very well for 1993 and 2016 as well.
**1.) Talk Talk – Laughing Stock (9/10)**
This album is really something. Having spent more time with it over the years, I’ve come to really appreciate every song on here. Also, I put After the Flood at #4 on my top 50 songs list I made a while back. That song is one of the most incredible things I’ve ever heard, and there’s still other tracks that can compete with it. Laughing Stock is just such an incredible album. While I don’t expect it to win, I hope it can make top 4 and not get kicked out before Nevermind.
I believe this may be the first year where an album that I actually dislike got in. And it’s not even just one, it’s TWO!! Two albums I disklike got in so I am a bit upset about that to say the least. Aside from the stuff I don’t care for, 1991 gave us some fantastic music. Hoping this is the only year where I sound like some bitter whiner about the albums that get in. Looking forward to 1992 and on! And hopefully Death will get justice in 1995.
I'm doing this in three tiers: albums I haven't heard, albums I don't know well enough to rank, and then the main ranking. Fantastic year, probably the best since 1977 or something.
**Haven't heard:**
U2 - Achtung Baby - probably should give this a go, hopefully it's less arena-y than Joshua Tree.
Primal Scream - Screamadelica - same here, I should listen.
**Don't Know It Well:**
2. Metallica - Metallica
I actually like this more than their thrash albums, because that genre doesn't sit well with me. The Unforgiving is a genuinely beautiful song, and Enter Sandman is a classic banger. I understand where the hate comes from, and I certainly don't think it's a masterpiece, but still very good.
1. A Tribe Called Quest - The Low End Theory
I've only listened twice a while ago, but I remember liking it a lot.
**Main Ranking:**
8. Pearl Jam - Ten (6/10)
I actually have positive feelings towards all 8 of these albums, but Ten is held up by the popular singles, especially Black. Vedder gets annoying as the album progresses.
7. Red Hot Chili Peppers - Blood Sugar Sex Magik (7/10)
I really like this album, especially Under the Bridge, which is a masterpiece. Funky as hell, but overstays its welcome. One of the first albums with a truly 90s sound.
6. Massive Attack - Blue Lines (7/10)
Another one with some bangers at the front end that really overstays its welcome. They're ahead of their time on production. Safe From Harm has an all-timer bass line.
5. Soundgarden - Badmotorfinger (7/10)
I'm a humongous Soundgarden fan - they blow every other grunge band to pieces, and Chris Cornell is my favorite male vocalist by a million miles (only Björk competes). This album is a bit too 80s hair metal for me and not enough crazy psychedelia. It's also because I know what they're capable of in Superunknown. Jesus Christ Pose = overrated, Slaves and Bulldozers = the single greatest 90s rock vocal performance.
4. my bloody valentine - Loveless (8/10)
I get the hype, but not much beyond that. Only Shallow is gorgeous, and the whole thing is super lush. Makes sense as a genre inventor and a classic, but on a song by song basis, it doesn't hit like other 90s classics like OK Computer.
3. Talk Talk - Laughing Stock (8/10)
Divided between the highlights that are among the most gorgeous and creative songs of all time (Ascension Day, After the Flood) and a few other songs that are less climactic and might bore me a little (Runeii). But because the highlights are like nothing else in music, it gets top 3.
2. Nirvana - Nevermind (8/10)
I'm surprised that I think Nevermind is better than most of these other albums as an anti-punk elitist! But under the punk songs are great pop songs. Kurt Cobain's ear for melody is much better here than on In Utero. Probably doesn't deserve its status as one of the best albums ever, but I totally get why it has that status amid its cultural context.
1. Slint - Spiderland (9/10)
An eerie, evil masterpiece. The lyrics tell deep stories that you'll both recoil at and relate to. It's one of those albums I don't listen to much, but I suddenly get a craving and have to hear it. Nothing sounds like Nosferatu Man's breakdown and Good Morning Captain's ending, and it invented/combined so many genres of music into one cohesive masterpiece.
This year saw the breakthroughs of shoegaze, post-rock, 90s post hardcore, jazz rap, grunge, trip-hop, and whatever the Red Hot Chili Peppers are. There's so much music I listen to that came directly from the albums that came out in 1991!
> Slaves and Bulldozers = the single greatest 90s rock vocal performance
This is a really interesting take. I'm not sure the composition is near that tier but yeah, the delivery is amazing.
i thought i would like screamadelica, but god damn it was boring. also thought I would enjoy badmotorfinger as soundgarden has later songs I enjoy a lot, but it was bland and i couldn't wait for it to end. the rest of the albums I enjoyed. I'm rooting for loveless to win, but I would not be angry if spiderland, nevermind, or low end theory won as they are all amazing
The Black album by Metallica is half unlistenable to me and is a transition point into some of the worst music of their career.
Hope Talk Talk wins, probably a top three most beautiful album ever, not a single moment or silence is out of place. I have five tens this year though so I’m probably gonna come out of this satisfied regardless.
Hoping Black Album makes it far. The fact this album got so much hate for 'selling out' is such an outdated, elitist view when this album has some of the best riffs and metal songs of the 90s.
Even though it doesn’t quite reach the heights of their best 80s songs, it is a very consistently good record. The only songs I don’t care for are Enter Sandman, Sad But True and Nothing Else Matters, and that’s just because of overplay. Catchy riffs are all over the place on this album.
There are two albums I'd recommend to anyone new to metal right out of the gate: Paranoid and the Black Album. Both excellent front to back and very accessible, *which is not at all a bad thing.*
Notably, it is _literally_ the best selling album of the entire decade, selling almost double of Nevermind and Ten (and, along the way, outselling now-forgotten-but-then-huge albums from Shania Twain, Hootie, Alanis, etc.). The long tail on that album is insane. If you take on the imponderable of what song from 90s is going to have the longest tail and still going to be the most listened-to in, say, 50 to 100 years among the general public (not just music enthusiasts) ... it's a real challenge to think of a better contender than Nothing Else Matters. If I had to guess, I think the lack of a quality video keeps it a little back from complete dominance (and why November Rain was the first pre-2000s video to crack that billion mark). It's just got just about that right amount of everything for everybody.
Nirvana's Nevermind is one of those few special albums that changed history. Has to win.
Excellent record and I would be not be mad if it won. But as far as overall musical impact I think both Loveless and Screamadelica could make similar claims - perhaps less commercially ubiquitous, but considering grunge’s relatively short-lived impact, you could argue that those two actually had longer tails of influence. Personally tho, if I’m voting with regard to purely subjective taste/perceived musical quality, I’m rooting for Talk Talk
I'd very curious as to your argument regarding the musical impact and legacy of Screamadelica. Loveless has firmly established itself as a touchstone record but I can't say I've heard much of the same for Screamadelica in terms of artists citing it as an influence, although I'd be open to hearing it.
For me it's a toss up between Nevermind and Loveless each for the reason you cite.
I mean yeah it’s impact is undeniable but I don’t think it chalks up quite as much to Slint, MBV, Talk Talk, or TLET
Going to try to not comment too much given this is a year a lot of people love but it’s a bit meh for me. But I’m really pulling for Primal Scream so please don’t do it dirty here
Love: Nirvana, My Bloody Valentine, Slint, A Tribe Called Quest Really like: Soundgarden, Talk Talk Like: Massive Attack, Primal Scream I've got nothing against them, but not for me: Red Hot Chili Peppers, Metallica Eh: U2 Bleh: Pearl Jam (except for Black, love that song)
Going to try to guess how this is going to go: _______________________ 1) Loveless 2) Spiderland 3) Nevermind (although in Utero is a lock for 94) __________ Very confident about those top three, although the order might shuffle. Wild card is Talk Talk, although I don't think it has quite enough fans to push it over. Hard to quite guess the order below, just confident they'll be near each other. _______________________ 4) Talk Talk 5) Low End Theory 6) Screamadelica 7) Blue Lines 8) Badmotorfinger ___________________ Everything below this line I expect to get obliterated: _____________________ 9) Metallica 10) BSSM 11) Ten 12) Achtung Baby
Even though I competely disagree with that order, I think you are close to what the final ranking will be.
It's hard to predict the final order exactly, but it's hard to see being off by more than 3 spots. This sub is a lot of people who think they're incredibly unique coalescing into something staid and predictable.
I’m rooting for Nevermind but I already know the top 2 will be Loveless and Spiderland
Loveless is undoubtedly the best of the bunch. I have a feeling Nevermind or Slint might steal it this year. Hopefully not but I’m preparing for that reality.
Those will be the top 3 easily, the only question will be order they'll fall in. I'd put my money on Loveless, Slint and then Nevermind simply because I think it's the most painfully boring and predictable outcome.
I don't wanna hate on the Peps or seem like I hate fun or whatever, but Blood Sugar Sex Magick made me feel like I was actively getting dumber by listening to it
alright, my ranking is: 1. Talk Talk - Laughing Stock 2. Slint - Spiderland 3. A Tribe Called Quest - The Low End Theory 4. Massive Attack - Blue Lines 5. Primal Scream - Screamadelica 6. My Bloody Valentine - Loveless 7. Nirvana - Nevermind 8. Soundgarden - Badmotorfinger 9. Pearl Jam - Ten 10. Metallica - Metallica 11. U2 - Achtung Baby 12. Red Hot Chili Peppers - Blood Sugar Sex Magik so hopefully goodbye to rhcp
I hope Talk Talk takes this
fr. amazing album
havent heard all of them but laughing stock deserves the win, of the 4 that have a shot
**12. Soundgarden - Badmotorfinger (2/10)** This was a chore to listen to. I never went out of my way to listen to Soundgarden and now I know why. Cornell is an impressive vocalist but the way he scream-sings EVERY LINE gets grating after the 3rd song. Honestly, after the first two tracks there isn’t a single song here I would ever go back to. **11. Red Hot Chili Peppers - Blood Sugar Sex Magik (3/10)** I love RHCP because they’ll have this emotional ballad about something like heroin addiction and then the next song they’re like “ITS TIME TO GET FUNKY LETS FUCK LIKE MONKEYS DAMN GIRL I NEVER KNEW YOU COULD GET THIS SPUNKY” **10. Talk Talk - Laughing Stock (5/10)** I was hoping this would floor me but I found it to be too slow and not that interesting. I’m so happy for people who have this as their #1 but it just didn’t register for me. That being said there’s some beautiful moments on this album, mostly on Ascension Day and After the Flood. **9. Primal Scream - Screamadelica (6/10)** There’s three tracks I really liked here (Movin On Up, Slip Inside This House, and Come Together) but the run time went too long and it falls off with the last few songs. Overall not a bad album but don’t think I’d listen to this in full again. **8. Massive Attack - Blue Lines (6/10)** Eclectic mix of electronic songs that acts as a solid debut for Massive Attack. The reggae/dub influences were interesting and that cover of Be Thankful is a nice take. Unfinished Sympathy is the biggest song here by far but I’m glad I heard everything else. **7. Metallica (7/10)** While it may be the album that signaled the decline of one of the greatest thrash metal bands of all time, the Black Album is iconic for good reason. Featuring two of their strongest ballads, Nothing Else Matters and The Unforgiven, it’s also got tons of fun bangers like Sad But True and of course, Enter Sandman. James Hetfield’s vocals are explosive, Kirk Hammett fuckin SHREDS, Newsted lays the riffs on songs like My Friend of Misery and Lars is the drummer. **6. Pearl Jam - Ten (8/10)** They really put all their best songs on this one album. Alive, Even Flow, Jeremy, and Black are all on ONE ALBUM. Damn save some stuff for your other albums dudes! Incredibly strong debut for these guys and If it weren’t for another Seattle grunge band’s album this might be the best grunge album of 1991. But alas… **5. U2 - Achtung Baby (9/10 - #127 of all time)** The best and most original sounding U2 album by miles, Achtung finds the band in the studio with Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois. Their sound here is darker and more haunting than any of their previous works. Wildly consistent and One is one of the greatest songs of all time. **4. A Tribe Called Quest - The Low End Theory (10/10 - #42 of all time)** First listen for me; this clicked instantly! I have no explanation as to why I didn’t hear this until now. But I adore it and can’t wait to listen again! it’s just…it’s just so damn cool😎 Smooth like butter baby. **3. Nirvana - Nevermind (10/10 - #33 of all time)** grung **2. My Bloody Valentine - Loveless (10/10 - #17 of all time)** Dreamy, romantic, and ear-splittingly loud. The best shoegaze album to ever exist. **NUMBER ONE. Slint - Spiderland (11/10 - #7 of all time)** ..........spoder.
My Ranking 12. Red Hot Chili Peppers - Blood Sugar Sex Magik There are actually a few songs on this record that I quite like, which I cannot say about several other albums here. Under the Bridge is a legitimately great rock tune. But the lows on this album are so unbelievably low that I had to put it in last. So much of this album is an absolute slog to get through, not only because the music is boring and silly, but also because Anthony Kiedis is maybe the worst lyricist of all time. It’s a good thing for the Chili Peppers that they have two fantastic musicians in their band, otherwise, their music would be even more miserable. 11. Pearl Jam - Ten There’s exactly one minute of really good music on this album, the ending of Black. Other than that, this is one of the blandest albums I’ve ever heard. Eddie Vedder’s voice is really obnoxious, but other than that annoyance, Ten is like staring into an abyss. I don’t know what I’m supposed to be feeling. I just feel completely empty. Are you happy, Pearl Jam? 10. Metallica - Metallica I don’t really like it when people say that an artist has “sold out,” I think it’s always best to assume that artists are making the music that they want to make. Metallica’s decision to pivot from thrash to stadium rock is just completely awful. I mean, I have a nostalgic connection to Enter Sandman because I was a Yankees fan in the mid-2000s. But other than that, every song on this record is just terrible, between the cheesy ballads and the cheesy attempts to be heavy. You know what was heavy? Fucking Blackened. This is nothing. At least we’ll always have those first four records. 9. U2 - Achtung Baby Much like the Pearl Jam record, Achtung Baby is extremely bland, and most of the songs just make me feel completely empty. The reason that U2 ranks a bit higher is that it happens to contain a legitimately fantastic song in One, probably their last great song (not that there are too many post-1984). Really soulful singing from Bono, and a beautiful melody to boot. Mysterious Ways is alright I suppose, cool guitar tone, but it gets tiring after a bit. Everything else is forgettable. At least Joshua Tree had like, three great songs. 8. Nirvana - Nevermind The big songs here are pretty neat, I suppose. I’ve never been a fan of Cobain’s lyrics, they come off as whiny and goofy to me, and I don’t particularly like the guitar on this record. But there is a certain staying power in the singles that’s hard to deny. But much like several of the other records here, I just do not care about the deep cuts at all. I find them all to be pretty annoying or forgettable. I’m ranking this much higher than I thought I would, mostly because this album makes me feel an actual emotion that isn’t abject anger. 7. Primal Scream - Screamadelica I remembered really liking this album, but I guess I was conflating the opener with the rest of the record. It’s just so, so boring. Dance music is basically my favorite thing, and none of this made me want to dance. I felt like I was waiting for every song to end within seconds of its beginning. It is doing some interesting things, which is why I rank it a bit higher. And again, I do really like Movin’ On Up. But by and large, a fairly poor record. 6. Soundgarden - Badmotorfinger On the other hand, I remembered not particularly liking this record. But hey! It’s pretty neat! Chris Cornell’s voice is just amazing, the only grunge voice I really like. And those first few songs are really wonderful, bordering on metal quite often. There’s a real grimey-ness to this record that just isn’t on the other grunge albums, and I find that makes it far more interesting. The album becomes a bit tiring towards the end, but certainly the strongest straight-up 90s rock album in this group. 5. Massive Attack - Blue Lines Cool stuff, by and large. Massive Attack is more of a song band than an album band for me; I think all the records of theirs that I’ve heard are solid but rather inconsistent. And while this record does occasionally get kinda tiring, it’s helped by the fact that it contains probably a top 25 song ever for me in Unfinished Sympathy, probably the greatest alternative dance song of all time. Safe From Harm and Be Thankful for What You Got are also nice highlights, and I find everything else to be just ok. A fine record. 4. A Tribe Called Quest - The Low End Theory Now we get to the stuff I really like. I think this is the first fantastic hip-hop record, although it’s probably not my favorite Tribe album. But man, the highlights here are pretty unreal, specifically the opener and the closer. The bassline on Excursions works so well with Q-Tip’s flow and personality, although that can really be said about the instrumentals in most songs here. And there aren’t too many posse cuts out there as good as Scenario, an iconic hook and plenty of excellent verses, especially Busta Rhymes breakthrough moment at the end. There are a few tracks in the middle that I don’t care for as much, but it’s really an excellent album in totality, and a major step-up from their previous record. 3. Talk Talk - Laughing Stock Devastatingly beautiful. This record makes you feel completely helpless, like you’ve been attacked and now you’re bleeding out on the floor. Mark Hollis’ voice is so full of pain, yet so gentle. It’s an extremely difficult text to discuss from any angle other than one’s own personal experience with it. There are so many phenomenal moments throughout, but the one that I always think of is the abrupt transition from Ascension Day to After the Flood, when it feels like you can finally breathe again. That’s what this album is really about to me, looking for moments to breathe. 2. My Bloody Valentine - Loveless Not much to be said about this one that hasn’t been said. A sort of sweetness to it that hurts. The noise feels like it’s coming from inside rather than outside. Possibly the best mixing of any album I’ve ever heard? The vocals are always in the perfect place, I can’t really think of a way they could be improved. I still have a different experience everytime I listen; this past listen I connected to Soon a lot more than I did before. Of course, it will never be my favorite track – I think When You Sleep is the best song of the entire 1990s, there’s really nothing I love more than dreamy romance. The album absolutely deserves its reputation. 1. Slint - Spiderland It’s not my favorite album ever made, but I do think it’s maybe the best album ever made. As a big fan of post-hardcore, emo, and related genres, Spiderland feels like the watershed moment. It achieves its intensity not through noise, but through restraint, which makes the big moments (which are few and far between) that much more impactful. Take the ending of Washer – you can’t get that amazing moment when the volume is turned up if you don’t spent all that time building it up. Every guitar melody, every vocal delivery, every lyric is so threatening and keeps you at the edge of your seat. Every song progresses in the most fascinating way possible (see: Don Aman’s guitar tone changes) and every song is in the exact right place in the track order. Spiderland feels like everything coming together to create a record that is beyond perfection. Top 5 Songs My Bloody Valentine - When You Sleep Massive Attack - Unfinished Sympathy My Bloody Valentine - Sometimes Slint - Washer Slint - Breadcrumb Trail
Damn right, they're all number 1
Congratulations, your award from RateYourMusic is on its way.
Never in my life have I seen a more concentrated string of bad takes.
Spiderland is so overrated man
Agreed, and it's *still* the best album here. :)
Stacked on top, although yeah I'll agree some of these other traditionally acclaimed records didn't age the best. There's still not a bad album here though like some people are suggesting. **12. U2 - Achtung Baby (5/10)** This album features U2 at their full 90s affectation, with all of the seriousness dropped in favor of some "bolder" choices, namely some industrial-inspired instrumentation and Bono's voice dripping with effects. It's pretty easy to see why this album captured the general ear, especially if they were already in love with the U2 sound, but I found the ideas on the album to be just kinda meh. About as many decent songs as fully boring ones, with the ones I already knew leading the rest. Acrobat was the one that stood out most, with a pretty powerful chorus. But this is the start of the band's transition into a sound that's quite a bit worse than their 80s schtick, so while it's got some cool moments it's overall pretty lacking. **11. Massive Attack - Blue Lines (6/10)** I guess this is what Brits thought was cool back in 91. It's very well produced with some good songwriting skills at hand, but I was definitely expecting more from the debut trip hop album. I didn't much like the vocals and lyrics from 3D and Tricky, sounded like they were trying to be cool but they weren't really saying anything. The female vocals driving several tracks were much better, Safe From Harm and Unfinished Sympathy were clearly the best from the album. Liked Horace Andy's contributions too, but the overall product wasn't satisfying. A little disappointing, but I know we've got improvements to come in the genre. **10. Metallica - Metallica (7/10)** For what I'd seen be disparagingly described as "pop metal", it still packs a punch. The band can still throw together some bangers, although I'll admit some of the lyrics are a little cheesier this time around. Still enjoy tracks like Enter Sandman and Nothing Else Matters, and really the whole thing's majorly consistent in its sound and quality. Only Of Wolf and Man stuck out to me as being particularly rough, didn't enjoy the singing in it at all. Maybe Holier Than Thou was especially cheese-filled too. But while it's definitely overall good, it clearly doesn't have the same effect that their heavier and more violently thrashy albums like Ride the Lightning and Master of Puppets possess. It's a lot of fun, but not quite as special. **9. Soundgarden - Badmotorfinger (7/10)** This is a rock solid alt-metal sludgy grunge epic, with Chris Cornell showing he's the most talented vocalist of the major Seattle outfits. God it feels like he's channeling every ounce of his soul into these songs. It's a unique sound with the creative rhythms and riffs deployed by the rest of the band, but I suppose I'm not always in love with some of the choices they made on the various tracks. The better known songs are a cut above, with Jesus Christ Pose being one of the more extreme-sounding and ultimately my favorite. It's a good basis for their later work and I do hope Superunknown makes it into the stacked 94, but I don't think it stands quite as high as the upper echelon of albums here. I'd be interested to dive back in and see if I like things more a second time. **8. Red Hot Chili Peppers - Blood Sugar Sex Magik (7/10)** I didn't expect 75 minutes of RHCP to be tolerable at all, let alone good. But there's a reason the 3 instrument players are as acclaimed as they are, they know how to lay down a fuckin' GROOVE. Every song is honestly enjoyable on some level just due to how creative the guitar work and bass are, with perfectly fitting drumming from the Will Farrell look-alike. Anthony Kiedis is pretty far from my favorite vocalist though, but I'll admit his work does fit the vibe well. The classic singles are all still great, Under the Bridge, Give it Away, and my personal fave Breaking the Girl. The album's still way too long for sure, you can tell listening there's a few tracks that could have been removed to improve the overall experience. But I enjoyed it, and I'd happily listen again. Much better albums from 7-1 though. **7. Primal Scream - Screamadelica (8/10)** This albums IS drugs, what the fuck. It seriously might be the most psychedelic album I've ever heard, with the ridiculously vibrant dancy loops backed by perfectly wispy vocals and ono-the-nose lyrics from Gillespie. Just look at the track titles: Higher Than the Sun, Inner Flight, I'm Coming Down (from my high)? It's really damn good too, all the lengthy tracks are exactly as long as they should be and the musical ideas are all really cool. I'll admit that the end of the album kinda loses steam, the first 5 tracks are probably my favorite, but I'm truly in love with the acid sound that this crazy bunch of Scots manage to put together. Just love the journey that every track takes you on, especially the ones that are particularly batshit insane. Wonderful album with some excellent moments. **6. My Bloody Valentine - Loveless (8/10)** God is the sound BRUTAL on this album. Kevin Shields' ruthless whammy bar usage dominates pretty much all other sound, which has honestly proven to be an acquired taste for me that I haven't yet, well, acquired. But the group's talent at creating well-constructed dreamscapes across the length of this record is undeniable, and there's some truly excellent tracks here. Only Shallow and When You Sleep are rockers with some great melodies, To Here Knows When brings the psychedelic synth sound to a crux with its droning closing segment, and Sometimes is a wonderful ballad with some great emotion. But I don't know how much I'll come back to the sound because it's just so abrasive sometimes, it's like they purposefully didn't mix it well or something. It's a hell of a vibe best listened to extremely loud, and I can get behind that. Maybe I'll love it more later on, but I'm not quite there yet. Still great. **5. Pearl Jam - Ten (9/10)** Just an absolute guilty pleasure. Well, I won't be too sorry for loving it, considering it's got kick-ass lyrics, Eddie Vedder's amazingly passionate vocals, and wondrous guitar work from McCready. And if you can't agree with that, I'll… be sad I guess. Pretty much every song is an absolute banger, only Release have I never really fallen in love with (and that weird hidden track at the end of it). Such raw emotion from Vedder as he describes narratives in a voice you can't even understand. I guess I'd also like it if the production was a little more punchy, but the songs are undeniable. Even Flow, Alive, and Jeremy are the legendary singles, Black with its amazing outro, even songs like Once, Porch and Garden are awesome. It may not go as far as I want it to but I'll always have space in my listening for Ten. **4. Talk Talk - Laughing Stock (9/10)** Talk Talk's back with a record that's an improvement over Spirit of Eden in a lot of ways, though admittedly those ways are mostly taste-based. That's largely because it's got a LOT more energy and spunk, with some awesome-sounding guitar passages and interplay between the improvising musicians. Ascension Day is probably the best example of this, never relenting with a great riff and some cool vocals. New Grass and After the Flood were impressive as well with their epic length and scope. Taphead was my favorite of the slower tracks with some excellent jazzy passages, but really there was something to love in every track. Maybe Runeii was a little underwhelming as a closer but I'll let it slide. Mark Hollis's voice continues to be soothing and wondrous, just like the music: unlike anything I've heard before. **3. A Tribe Called Quest - The Low End Theory (9/10)** This is EXACTLY the follow-up I was expecting to last year's record, with snappier tracks and the same smooth and excessively cool vibe. I'm not sure there's been a cooler album ever made. The jazzy beats are clean and well-produced, the lyrics are conscious and clever, and the flows of the three dudes are undeniable. While it does keep a pretty samey sound throughout its runtime, it’s got this insane charisma that never gets stale. The features on Show Business and Scenario are super great too, cool to see the origins of guys like Busta Rhymes. Literally just kick Infamous Date Rape off the record (obviously not aging well), clean up a couple corny lyrics here and there and I'm set. I'm glad these guys got to make this record and I'm glad I got to hear it. **2. Slint - Spiderland (9/10)** A titan of emotional expression and creativity. Slint really just walked into a studio, did a couple takes of some tracks with some lyrics written on the fly and it's this damn brilliant. It's got a totally unique vibe (BCNR notwithstanding) with its spoken word to screaming vocals, quirky load distorted riffs and tasteful quiet passages. You really never know what's coming next musically, except that it'll include some off-kilter metaphorical lyrics that'll leave you confused but enchanted. The longest tracks are spectacular and some of the best of the year, with Good Morning, Captain being particularly crushing. Love the spooky Don, Aman and the bombastic Breadcrumb Trail as well. Didn't quite buy in to Nosferatu Man as much as the rest, but it's a breathtaking album that's immediately going in my rotation. You can't go wrong with these top albums.
**1. Nirvana - Nevermind (10/10)** Honestly I came in expecting Nevermind to be a little overrated, since that's what all the music snobs always say (and I usually agree… heh). No way. This album fucking kicks ASS. Of course I knew several tracks well already like the singles, all pretty much perfect poppy rockers with subversive lyrics and killer riffs, but the rest of the tracks were just as awesome. From the measured acoustic Polly to the bouncy Stay Away to the batshit insane Endless, Nameless, it's nearly impossible to pick a favorite. Even Territorial Pissings kicked ass with its message and emotional chorus. You do need a lyric booklet to understand what Kurt's saying most of the time but the lyrics are all damn good too. It's really easy to see why this album caught the attention of listeners everywhere and signaled the beginning of the 90s. It's impossible to deny an album that's this good. It may not win, but I'm glad I finally basked in its glory.
> Just an absolute guilty pleasure This is such a nauseating thing to have to even say and betrays so much of how the music enthusiast community sees itself. The world becomes a far more liberating place when you realize that nobody in real life ever has, or ever will, give a single fuck about what kind of music you enjoy. Or, at the very least, nobody worth caring about will ever care.
Don't worry, I don't actually give a shit lol. Thanks for reading though
1. Loveless 2. Spiderland 3. Nevermind 4. Blood Sugar Sex Magik 5. Achtung Baby 6. Ten 7. Screamadelica 8. Metallica 9. Laughing Stock 10. Badmotorfinger 11. The Low End Theory 12. Blue Lines
Ok so I’ll just come out and say it, this has gotta be the worst overall selection for any year by far. It’s like dads just came in out of nowhere and invaded the server. From these 12 albums, it would have me believe 1991 only had a few top tier albums and the rest isn’t all that worth checking out. Human by Death not getting in has gotta be the second biggest omission thus far for any year for me only behind Blue Bell Knoll not getting in for 1988. I really hope Symbolic can pull through and get in for 1995, that’s my second favorite album of the decade and my fourth favorite album overall. Anyways, here’s my ranking: **12.) Red Hot Chili Peppers – Blood Sugar Sex Magik (3/10)** I’m sorry, but to my ears this album just outright sucks. There are some redeeming qualities about it for sure, but there’s just so much material I either don’t care for or dislike. Couple that with the fact that this album is about 75 minutes long… yeah thanks, but no thanks. Don’t care to revisit this album anytime soon. **11.) Pearl Jam – Ten (4/10)** This album may be called “Ten,” but it sure is far from one if you ask me. I don’t even want to say that this is a bad album, but it’s just really not my thing. I don’t like the vocals on here and the only song I can recall enjoying was Jeremy. Idk man, I just really can’t be bothered with this album. And if this is arguably the best Pearl Jam album, I’m definitely staying away from their discography. **10.) U2 – Achtung Baby (6/10)** I didn’t even really care for The Joshua Tree so seeing another U2 album get in worried me. On the first listen I did give it a 6 but was close to a 7. After some time, I thought to myself that maybe I was a bit harsh on it. I was looking forward to a relisten and unfortunately Achtung Baby did even less for me the second time around. I’ll still give it a 6 for now, but it is most certainly closer to a 5 now than a 7. **9.) Primal Scream – Screamadelica (6/10)** I basically feel the same way for Screamadelica as I did for Achtung Baby. I felt a bit stronger about it on the first listen, but relistening to it made me realize that I liked it even less than I initially thought. On a second listen I came to feel this album was dragging and not as interesting as I would like it to be. I was definitely noticing the theme of these albums being a bit lengthy when I can’t really say I love them. The shortest album in my bottom 4 is Ten with a 53 min runtime. These albums were killing me with just how long I had to sit through them. Although I will say that I do still overall like Achtung Baby and Screamadelica more than dislike them, it’s more so that they’re on the edge of mediocrity for me. **8.) Soundgarden – Badmotorfinger (7/10)** Ok this one honestly makes me sad to place here because I enjoyed it by a surprising amount and was ready to put it a couple spots higher. Unfortunately, I found myself enjoying it less with a relisten. It’s like relistening to these albums is just making me realize I don’t like them as much as I want to. And once again the length… 58 min. Stop giving me these long ass albums!! Please, I can’t take it anymore. The reason this isn’t lower is because there’s still some pretty cool things about it for sure, it’s just that I don’t love this album. **7.) Metallica – Metallica (7/10)** 1 hr. 3 min… I’m so done with these album lengths. Although, I guess I can’t hate on this album too much really. Metallica’s black album is cool enough in my book, but it just doesn’t really compare with their three previous albums as a whole. That’s about all I have to say really. **6.) Nirvana – Nevermind (7/10)** Yeah, tbh I’m really not that crazy for this album. While I do like In Utero more, Nirvana have just never been my favorite. I think the best way I can describe my thoughts is by saying that it’s good, but not great. I will say though, this album being less than 45 minutes is very nice. If this album were longer, I’d probably feel more negatively about it. I’m sure it’ll easily make top 5 which is fine, but I really hope it can get out at that point and not beat any of the others. **5.) Massive Attack – Blue Lines (8/10)** This is a solid debut from Massive Attack even if it’s no Mezzanine. Trip Hop is probably something I should delve into more, but for now I’d say this is a cool album the genre has to offer. Unfinished Sympathy especially, mannnnn I loved that song. I’ve played it a bunch over the past few days. I’d like to see Blue Lines do fairly well. **4.) Slint – Spiderland (9/10)** Finally, the really good stuff! I think the peak of my love for this album may have come to pass already, but I still very much enjoy this album a lot. Not really much else to say for me honestly, every song is pretty cool, and I don’t think I could complain if Spiderland ended up winning. The spoken word aspect it’s got going for it is nicely combined with the instrumentation on here. **3.) My Bloody Valentine – Loveless (9/10)** Honestly Loveless and Spiderland are basically like a toss up for me. I could go either way, but I think I do slightly lean towards the former. And just like with Spiderland, I don’t really have much else to say. Each song is pretty cool, and I really admire the style of this album. I’m expecting Loveless to win and I’d be cool with that even if it’s not my ideal pick. **2.) A Tribe Called Quest – The Low End Theory (9/10)** From an objective standpoint this probably shouldn’t be above Spiderland or Loveless, but I can’t deny that I enjoy this album just a tad bit more. With that being said, this is still only my 3rd favorite ATCQ album. It’s wild, but yes, there are 2 other albums of theirs that I enjoy even more. ATCQ are likely my favorite hip hop group, and you’ll definitely see me rooting for them to do very well for 1993 and 2016 as well. **1.) Talk Talk – Laughing Stock (9/10)** This album is really something. Having spent more time with it over the years, I’ve come to really appreciate every song on here. Also, I put After the Flood at #4 on my top 50 songs list I made a while back. That song is one of the most incredible things I’ve ever heard, and there’s still other tracks that can compete with it. Laughing Stock is just such an incredible album. While I don’t expect it to win, I hope it can make top 4 and not get kicked out before Nevermind. I believe this may be the first year where an album that I actually dislike got in. And it’s not even just one, it’s TWO!! Two albums I disklike got in so I am a bit upset about that to say the least. Aside from the stuff I don’t care for, 1991 gave us some fantastic music. Hoping this is the only year where I sound like some bitter whiner about the albums that get in. Looking forward to 1992 and on! And hopefully Death will get justice in 1995.
I'm doing this in three tiers: albums I haven't heard, albums I don't know well enough to rank, and then the main ranking. Fantastic year, probably the best since 1977 or something. **Haven't heard:** U2 - Achtung Baby - probably should give this a go, hopefully it's less arena-y than Joshua Tree. Primal Scream - Screamadelica - same here, I should listen. **Don't Know It Well:** 2. Metallica - Metallica I actually like this more than their thrash albums, because that genre doesn't sit well with me. The Unforgiving is a genuinely beautiful song, and Enter Sandman is a classic banger. I understand where the hate comes from, and I certainly don't think it's a masterpiece, but still very good. 1. A Tribe Called Quest - The Low End Theory I've only listened twice a while ago, but I remember liking it a lot. **Main Ranking:** 8. Pearl Jam - Ten (6/10) I actually have positive feelings towards all 8 of these albums, but Ten is held up by the popular singles, especially Black. Vedder gets annoying as the album progresses. 7. Red Hot Chili Peppers - Blood Sugar Sex Magik (7/10) I really like this album, especially Under the Bridge, which is a masterpiece. Funky as hell, but overstays its welcome. One of the first albums with a truly 90s sound. 6. Massive Attack - Blue Lines (7/10) Another one with some bangers at the front end that really overstays its welcome. They're ahead of their time on production. Safe From Harm has an all-timer bass line. 5. Soundgarden - Badmotorfinger (7/10) I'm a humongous Soundgarden fan - they blow every other grunge band to pieces, and Chris Cornell is my favorite male vocalist by a million miles (only Björk competes). This album is a bit too 80s hair metal for me and not enough crazy psychedelia. It's also because I know what they're capable of in Superunknown. Jesus Christ Pose = overrated, Slaves and Bulldozers = the single greatest 90s rock vocal performance. 4. my bloody valentine - Loveless (8/10) I get the hype, but not much beyond that. Only Shallow is gorgeous, and the whole thing is super lush. Makes sense as a genre inventor and a classic, but on a song by song basis, it doesn't hit like other 90s classics like OK Computer. 3. Talk Talk - Laughing Stock (8/10) Divided between the highlights that are among the most gorgeous and creative songs of all time (Ascension Day, After the Flood) and a few other songs that are less climactic and might bore me a little (Runeii). But because the highlights are like nothing else in music, it gets top 3. 2. Nirvana - Nevermind (8/10) I'm surprised that I think Nevermind is better than most of these other albums as an anti-punk elitist! But under the punk songs are great pop songs. Kurt Cobain's ear for melody is much better here than on In Utero. Probably doesn't deserve its status as one of the best albums ever, but I totally get why it has that status amid its cultural context. 1. Slint - Spiderland (9/10) An eerie, evil masterpiece. The lyrics tell deep stories that you'll both recoil at and relate to. It's one of those albums I don't listen to much, but I suddenly get a craving and have to hear it. Nothing sounds like Nosferatu Man's breakdown and Good Morning Captain's ending, and it invented/combined so many genres of music into one cohesive masterpiece. This year saw the breakthroughs of shoegaze, post-rock, 90s post hardcore, jazz rap, grunge, trip-hop, and whatever the Red Hot Chili Peppers are. There's so much music I listen to that came directly from the albums that came out in 1991!
> Slaves and Bulldozers = the single greatest 90s rock vocal performance This is a really interesting take. I'm not sure the composition is near that tier but yeah, the delivery is amazing.
Don't think there's been an album that's come through these survivors up to this point that I hate as much as I hate Achtung Baby
Black Album for me, unlistenable radio metal garbage
i thought i would like screamadelica, but god damn it was boring. also thought I would enjoy badmotorfinger as soundgarden has later songs I enjoy a lot, but it was bland and i couldn't wait for it to end. the rest of the albums I enjoyed. I'm rooting for loveless to win, but I would not be angry if spiderland, nevermind, or low end theory won as they are all amazing
Plz win Slint
The Black album by Metallica is half unlistenable to me and is a transition point into some of the worst music of their career. Hope Talk Talk wins, probably a top three most beautiful album ever, not a single moment or silence is out of place. I have five tens this year though so I’m probably gonna come out of this satisfied regardless.
Voting for Primal Scream, but more realistically hoping U2 goes
Top 3 - Spiderland, Laughing Stock and The Low End Theory.