#438: Leonard Cohen - Songs of Leonard Cohen (1967)

Zack: Last year, 2016, was an incredible year for music. Heavyweights like Beyoncé, Kanye West, Frank Ocean, Rihanna, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, and Radiohead all released albums. We got very strong hip-hop albums from Chance the Rapper, YG, Run the Jewels, and ScHoolboy Q. David Bowie released a surprise album two days before his death and A Tribe Called Quest released their first album in nearly two decades to memorialize the legendary Phife Dawg. We even got a Kendrick project that gave a bit of a look into his album-making process (and had some good songs of its own merits). And this long list doesn’t even include the slightly less prominent albums by acts like Anderson .Paak, Sturgill Simpson, Solange, Kaytranada, NxWorries, Bon Iver, Noname, and Denzel Curry that I also really, really enjoyed. And, among that entire long list, my favorite album from 2016 was You Want it Darker by Leonard Cohen. It’s pretty much perfect. Plenty of people have commented about how Blackstar is an album from a man coming to terms with his own mortality. You Want it Darker sounds like an album from a man who is just to weary to think about it much. It’s an album that occurs between the acceptance and the actual death. It can be emotionally exhausting to listen to, but the experience is so worth it that I frequently return to it. Because of how much I absolutely adore that album, I was very excited to give some of his other works a listen. Songs of Leonard Cohen is about as far removed from You Want it Darker as it’s possible to get. Instead of Cohen’s final album, it’s his first, released almost 50 years prior when Cohen was a spry young pup in his early 30s. The weariness is unsurprisingly removed, but the care and precision of the lyrics is not. It’s a very good debut album. I didn’t find the subject matter quite as engaging, since on that front it is mostly just a traditional folk album. But there is clearly so much thought put into every single word in every single line that it is immediately captivating. Songs of Leonard Cohen feels like a really good audiobook is being read to you with a backing guitar.
Favorite Tracks: Master Song; One of Us Cannot Be Wrong; Suzanne


Emily: Several months ago, around when Leonard Cohen passed away, it seemed like his song Hallelujah was everywhere. I listened to a podcast that dissected many cover versions of the song, there was that painfully earnest SNL performance (and this less earnest one a few months later), and the song played over any award show montage that featured Cohen's death. Pairing that song's ubiquity with the fact that I was going through a particularly melancholy time, Hallelujah was stuck in my head for what seemed like weeks on end. I do like the song, particularly the Jeff Buckley cover, but I definitely had too much of it. So I can't say I was exactly excited to listen to a Leonard Cohen album, even though Zack has raved about his final album released last year. Mercifully, Songs of Leonard Cohen is not the album with Hallelujah on it. Several of the songs infuse a similar sense of melancholy and yearning, with simple and plaintive folk melodies that allow the intricate and emotional lyrics to shine through. Even from this early album, it's obvious that Cohen was a master storyteller, which is perhaps enough for me to overcome my Hallelujah fatigue and delve more deeply into his catalogue.
Favorite Tracks: Suzanne; Hey, That's No Way to Say Goodbye; Master Song

#437: Bad Brains - I Against I (1986)

Emily: I first heard of Bad Brains a few years back while watching Sonic Highways, the Foo Fighters' documentary series. In each episode, Dave Grohl & Co. visited a different American city and explored their musical traditions, culminating in the recording of a song influenced by the city's history and music. One episode brought them to Washington, D.C., Dave Grohl's hometown (well, home metro area, as Grohl is from northern Virginia) and where Zack and I currently live. Bad Brains was one of the most influential bands coming out of the D.C. hardcore punk scene (interestingly labeled as harDCore), and Grohl interviewed a few of the band's members about the culture of basement shows and DIY aesthetics. The resulting track, The Feast and the Famine, incorporates one of Bad Brains' driving credos, P.M.A., meaning Positive Mental Attitude. Though I hadn't listened to Bad Brains until today, save for the few clips in Sonic Highways, P.M.A. seems to fit with how the band fits into hardcore punk as a whole. I Against I isn't just loud guitars and unintelligible scream-sung lyrics, as much of this genre tends to be. Instead, the music has clear influences from reggae and go-go, a jazz-funk genre that originated in the black community in D.C., both of which are more melodic, upbeat, and positive than Bad Brains' punk brethren. The combination of punk and reggae is unique and exciting, and it made me hope that Bad Brains will bring their P.M.A. to a hometown show sooner rather than later.
Favorite Tracks: House of Suffering; Sacred Love; Re-Ignition


Zack: The other day, I was at a bar with some friends for cocktails and the place was playing almost exclusively '80s punk music. Dead Kennedys, Black Flag, etc. One of the people in the crew, whom I do not know very well, is apparently a big punk fan since he not only recognized every song but also knew the lyrics, which I was pretty sure up to that moment were all indecipherable and random chanting. We got to talking about it and I mentioned, as I have several times on here, that hardcore punk is not my favorite. He admitted it’s not for everyone and then we moved on. I kind of wished me had given me some recommendations now, because I really enjoyed I Against I. It kept the overall loudness of many of the band’s contemporaries, but infused more rhythm. The songs just sounded…better. If there’s anything from this era that’s more like Bad Brains, I should really make it a priority to check it out.
Favorite Tracks: Re-Ignition; I Against I; Return to Heaven

#436: Jay-Z - The Blueprint (2001)

Zack: I consider Blueprint to be Jay-Z’s third best album, and fourth if we’re counting Watch the Throne. Hova himself has it second without WTT. But yeah, sure, let’s make this the only Jay-Z album on the list. The Blueprint is an incredible and classic album, but I’d rather take the ungodly, Kanye-infused polish of the Black Album or the lyrical mastery of Reasonable Doubt any day. With that bit said, I’m going to talk about Renegade for way too long, because holy shit is that song incredible. Renegade was the first time I actually understood the concept of riding a beat. I heard Eminem say “rude, ludicrous, lucrative lyrics” over that “bum-badum-badum-tsk” beat and just went OH! Em so effectively used long O’s and sharp S’s to match the beat that it is basically a perfect example of rapping as a technique. Also, Renegade is responsible for me bonding with my old North Philly neighbors. I was stoop chillin’ with my old roommate when a neighbor walked down the street with a bodega bag. Renegade started playing and he turned to us and asked if we knew what song it was. I have listened to Renegade so many times that I can tell it’s about to play from the static in the air beforehand, so I responded immediately. He nodded and handed me a beer from his bag, asked for a shot of whiskey from the bottle I had, and then left. Every time I left the apartment after that, if he was outside he would stop me and give me a full rundown of wherever there had been a shooting or seemed to be heavier-than-normal police activity. Renegade may very well have prevented me from getting mugged on an occasion or two. Anyway, Renegade is a perfect song, although it is mostly an Eminem song (to paraphrase Nas, Eminem bodies Jay on his own shit) and so I’m happy Blueprint is on the list just so Emily gets to listen to it.
Favorite Tracks: Renegade; Renegade again [actually Heart of the City (Ain’t No Love)]; Renegade a third time [actually Takeover]


Emily: At some point a few years ago, probably at a party or other get-together, Zack told a friend of mine from law school that he knew all of the words to Renegade. I don't know the context in which that came up (and Zack probably doesn't remember), but I assume it was relevant to . . . something. Anyway, any time I mentioned Zack to this friend for several months thereafter, he would say that Zack must be awesome because he knows all of the words to Renegade. Again, I don't know why this was so impressive to my friend, but I'm sure if I asked him about it today he'd say the exact same thing. I'm sure I've heard Renegade before today, but now that it's fresh in my mind I can see why knowing all the words is quite a skill to have, and one that would be most impressive in a karaoke room. And, after reading Zack's review, I can see why he knows all the words to Renegade. Since The Blueprint was new to me (aside from the few singles I already knew), however, I'll focus on the album holistically. I've never really been into Jay-Z, even as I started listening to more rap and hip hop over the last several years. We went to the On the Run tour with Jay and Beyoncé a few years back (but had to leave halfway through for our friend's TMJ emergency), but the rationale behind that was 95% for seeing Beyoncé and about 5% for hearing 99 Problems and maybe Big Pimpin'. I like Watch the Throne, but mostly for the Kanye parts. And one of my dad's favorite songs is Empire State of Mind, which both he and I really only like for the Alicia Keys parts. So overall, Jay-Z has been incidental at most to my enjoyment of a lot of other music (and something has gotten in the way of it), but today was the first time I had focused on Jay-Z alone, and I enjoyed much of this album. The Kanye-produced beats are particularly strong, and the lyrics are still raw and biting (probably because Jay was facing 2 criminal trials and several rap beefs at the time, whereas now he's the CEO of Tidal and has three kids). And, yes, the rapping on Renegade is super impressive.
Favorite Tracks: Takeover; Renegade; Izzo (H.O.V.A.)

#435: Chic - Risqué (1979)

Zack: I don’t know what I was expecting, but groovy disco bangers wasn’t quite it. Somehow, I did not know that Chic was the band behind Good Times, which probably is what let to my expectations being off. For a disco album (a genre I am not particularly supportive of), this album was pretty damn good. It was lighthearted and fun without being annoying like, say, ABBA. I liked it enough to maybe listen to it again, but not enough to check out the new Chic album supposedly dropping later this year.
Favorite Tracks: Good Times; A Warm Summer Night; What About Me?


Emily: As someone who was a teenager in the '70s, my mom's two favorite genres of music are disco and funk. It's easy to understand why - although they have a reputation as cheesy, the best examples are fun, catchy, and great for dancing. While Chic is more often brought out at weddings and by cover bands than on mainstream radio or at dance clubs where my mom would've heard them back in the day, Risqué holds up as a standout of both the disco and funk genres. It combines signature disco guitar with funk horns and catchy hooks, creating a collection of songs that stand well on their own and are also ripe for sampling (which other artists have done many times over).
Favorite Tracks: Good Times; My Forbidden Lover; Can't Stand to Love You

#434: Hole - Live Through This (1994)

Zack: Courtney Love is such an enigmatic pop culture figure now, and sometimes a downright pariah, that I was unsure what to expect from a Hole album. I’ve heard singles like Doll Parts and Celebrity Skin and always thought they were kind of alright, but I wasn’t convinced that a full album would be consistently entertaining. Live Through This certainly delivers, though. There have been rumors circulating around it for years that Kurt Cobain ghostwrote the entire thing, and I can kind of see where those come from. There is, apparently, no actual evidence for such an accusation, but Live Through This has the kind of polished aggressiveness that Nevermind perfected. Which is not to say that Live Through This is anywhere near as good an album as Nevermind, but the aesthetic is similar (although the lyrics are actually decipherable here). Overall, Live Through This was loud and catchy and fun, and it makes a bit more sense why Courtney Love remains culturally relevant now.
Favorite Tracks: Violet; Doll Parts; She Walks on Me


Emily: Courtney Love has gotten a pretty bad rap over the years, particularly in the post-Cobain years where she tended to make a spectacle of herself on MTV while battling several personal demons. She's generally retreated from the limelight in the past few years, but it seems like her personal life is her longest-lasting legacy. That's really a shame, since Love has made some damn good music. Women weren't a huge part of the grunge scene, but Hole really breaks through that. Love and her bandmates take that signature grunge sound - the growling guitars, lo-fi production, and scream-howl vocals - but put a unique (and dare I say female?) spin on it with lyrics about motherhood and beauty standards and catchy hooks that are somehow both raw and made for radio. I really enjoyed this album, and I'll definitely return to it when I'm in a grunge kinda mood.
Favorite Tracks: Violet; Jennifer's Body; Doll Parts

#433: Leftfield - Leftism (1995)

Zack: Lately, I’ve been working on coding presidential campaign announcement speeches based on issue content. The endeavor has led me to a number of very interesting findings. For one, Herman Cain implies that we would be better off if the president were illiterate in his 2012 speech (something Rand Paul would vehemently disagree with, since he spends a good chunk of time talking about his proposed “Read the Bill” law that would require legislators to actually read legislation before they sign it) and that Ron Paul is strongly against the government regulating the pasteurization of milk. But besides for the occasional gems, the task is mostly incredibly boring. Most candidates say the same tired prose about American values over and over again. But the work still requires me too much of my attention. Other research I’ve done may have involved more rote data entry, and so I could listen to a podcast or an album or watch a basketball game while doing it. But here, any attempts at multitasking inevitably lead to me getting distracted. Except, that is, for this album apparently. Leftism is a house/dance album, so it perfectly blended into the background and didn’t distract me at all. There was enough change from track to track that I subconsciously could recognize when one song ended and another began, which let me subtly monitor that passage of time and give it a semi-informed review. And overall, I thought it was meh. But it was an unobtrusive meh, and I really appreciated it for that at least.
Favorite Tracks: Original; Open Up; Melt


Emily: Generally, my office is a headphone-free zone. There's no official rule, but there's only four of us, we're usually very busy with detail-oriented work, and my boss is decidedly old-school. Therefore, I'm usually working at my desk without any music, podcasts, or other audial ambiance. Today, though, is an exception. We're in a particularly slow time, and my boss is out all day, so I decided to get some album-listening in while doing a bit of research for my next case. Leftism turned out to be well-suited to desk listening. It's an electronic "dance" album, though I'm not sure how much actual dancing can be done to ambient melodies and house beats. However, it struck just the right balance between background ambiance and holding my attention, allowing for just enough focus on both the music and my research. Other albums wouldn't necessarily work quite as well for this task, but I'll keep my eye out for other desk-friendly music as the list goes forward. Perhaps people will even listen to more music at my next place of employment.
Favorite Tracks: Afro-Left; Space Shanty; Original

#432: The Beatles - Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967)

Zack: I think more than enough ink (digital and otherwise) had been spilled on this album, so I’m going to try and keep this semi-brief. I’m on record as thinking The Beatles are overrated, my case rests on the assertion that most of their catalogue is them making pretty good pop songs, and just because you were consistently good at something doesn’t, in itself, make it extraordinary. Sgt. Pepper’s, therefore, is not a piece of evidence I would call attention to. On this album (much as they do on Revolver as well) they try and experiment and push some boundaries. For me, they stand out here, and that answers my main criticism. That said, I still don’t particularly love this album. It’s good, and there are some songs I really like. Now that I think about it, I don’t think I’d ever sat down and listened to it from start to finish, although every single song was familiar. Kind of in the same way that if you’ve ever listened to a classic rock station, you’ve heard the entirety of Dark Side of the Moon. But I didn’t think the album gained much from being a cohesive project rather than a collection of songs. Plus, many of the songs, while different enough to be interesting, I ultimately didn’t think were that exciting. Basically, this album made me pay attention more than I did when we listened to With the Beatles, but I wasn’t quite as captivated as I was for Revolver. That’s enough for me to say that it’s worth checking out, but not enough for me to endorse it as an all-time great album.

Favorite Tracks: Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds; Good Morning Good Morning; With a Little Help from My Friends

Emily: The mythos and imagery surrounding Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band almost overshadows the music. The album cover, the band uniforms, the mustaches - all have been enshrined in the collective cultural memory as evidence of the world changing during the Summer of Love in 1967. By then, The Beatles had stopped performing live, abandoned the clean-cut image beloved by their teenage fans, and turned inward towards spirituality, experimentation, and (shortly thereafter) fighting amongst themselves. Sgt. Pepper is often regarded as a turning point in The Beatles' career, and the music reflects that just as well as everything else. Some of the music dips its toes into experimentation, while still remaining carefully crafted pop and rock songs. It's a moment of musical transition, but an iconic one. Nearly every song is recognizable to the most casual of music fans, and each one stands the test of time. Do I think Sgt. Pepper is the best Beatles album? Probably not. But it certainly lives up to the mythology that surrounds it.

Favorite Tracks: With a Little Help from My Friends; Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds; Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band