Red Mosquito

X Ray Spex - Germ Free Adolescents

This is another that I have to give some credit to the suggester - this is one fantastic gem of an album that I had no idea was out there. Among the British punk wave of the mid to late 70s, this is one of the finer albums in that timeline, with the horns adding dimension to a relatively straightforward punk rock focused on society’s turn towards artificial interests (hence the album title). The title track adds a bit of range to the sound, but there’s such great energy on this that it’s hard to argue with their main focus. I really connected with Let’s Submerge, Identity, and I Live Off You here. Excellent album.

The Essential Track: Let’s Submerge

Up Next: The Ramones - Road to Ruin

The Ramones - Road to Ruin

This album finds the Ramones pushing their own envelope a bit, it seems, mainly because the entirety of the album isn’t at warp speed. In that slight deviation, the songs do come more into focus, and this set is particularly good. I Just Want to Have Something to Do is one of my personal favorites of theirs, and I Wanna Be Sedated is iconic here, but I really also like Needles and Pins, Bad Brain, and She’s the One, but there’s no going wrong here. Just excellent front to back.

The Essential Track: I Just Want to Have Something to Do

Up Next: Siouxsie and the Banshees - The Scream

You’re plowing thru them today!

wease wrote:You’re plowing thru them today!

My methodology the past couple weeks has been on days I have to commute to the office to listen to these in the morning and try to listen to an album from this year on the way home. Making good progress on both ends.

Siouxsie and the Banshees - The Scream

The description I read while listening lumped this band in with the British punk wave of the late 70s, but it’s just as much that as a precursor to bands coming a handful of years later, like almost Green River. There’s more to this than punk, a sort of slowed down version that takes its cues from more than punk rock. And some of these songs are really strong here, like Jigsaw Feeling, Overground, Hong Kong Garden, and The Staircase (Mystery). I didn’t love everything here, but more than enough to find this both intriguing and an excellent listen.

The Essential Track: Hong Kong Garden

Up Next: Cheap Trick - Heaven Tonight

Cheap Trick - Heaven Tonight

By virtue of this being the album Surrender is on, Cheap Trick certainly weren’t slowing down with this one. The punk energy meets arena rock magnitude is in full force, even if the bulk of these songs sound like bonus tracks that didn’t make the phenomenal first two albums. Surrender, On Top of the World, and the title track are all fantastic here, with the rest feeling solid - I kept thinking on this that I somehow missed out on a great rock band, not because I never heard them before, but because I only knew their greatest hits. This may not be as good as the first two for me, but it’s got its fair share of great tracks and there’s nothing really bad here - maybe that it just doesn’t capture as much magic.

The Essential Track: Surrender

Up Next: Heart - Dreamboat Annie

Heart - Dreamboat Annie

This may not yet quite have the monster riffs as advertised in their great reputation, but this is a fantastic debut album, featuring the classic songs Magic Man and Crazy On You. Add to that the title track that develops over three parts across the album, the massive Sing Child, White Lightning and Wine, and the Battle of Evermore-like Soul of the Sea. There aren’t too many massive jams, but there are a ton of greats songs.

The Essential Track: Magic Man

Up Next: Heart - Little Queen (where we get some of them massive riffs)

Heart - Little Queen

Now THIS is one helluva record. Starting off with the killer combo of Barracuda and Love Alive, we’re already off to an epic start. The instrumental tracks, Sylvan Song that follows is very good, but Go On Cry is fantastic. Dream of the Archer is another of those songs that seems to borrow from Led Zeppelin’s brand of acoustic bluesy folk rock, and then it’s off to the big riff races, one song after the next just killing it. This, I found, to be much stronger and live up to the expectations that come with this band.

The Essential Track: Barracuda

Up Next: Heart - Dog & Butterfly

Heart - Dog & Butterfly

This is almost a tale of two albums, with side one picking up where Little Queen left off with big riff and excellent grooves. Granted, the fake audience on Cook With Fire is a little weird, but this side rolls through that, High Time, Hijinx, and Straight On with a good amount of momentum. Side two comprises of largely slower songs, of which Lighter Touch seemed like the best of the bunch. Mistral Wind transforms from a quiet song into a big finish to close the album, which I think is largely successful if not a small step down from their first.

The Essential Track: Hijinx

Up Next: Blondie - Parallel Lines

It kind of is two different albums. Dog is the rough side and Butterfly is the soft side.

Blondie - Parallel Lines

So this seems to get lumped in with more pop than rock, but really this album is a bit of both. Hanging on the Telephone, One Way or Another, and 11:59 are all rock songs, and even Heart of Glass toes the line nicely. Oldies remake I’m Gonna Love You Too is a great cover. Just Go Away is also a highlight. Granted, this thing really seems to hang on Debbie Harry’s delivery, but she’s just the right personality to drive these songs forward.

The Essential Track: One Way or Another

Up Next: Queen - Jazz

Queen - Jazz

I have to say I did enjoy this Queen album more than the others I have sampled thus far. While I am still not going crazy to reach for Bicycle Race or Fat Bottomed Girls (they are fine songs and a bit goofy but not the meat and potatoes of Queen), Don’t Stop Me Now does have an infectious energy, and More of That Jazz did close this thing fittingly. There’s no doubt Freddie Mercury is an all time frontman, which makes it all the more perplexing why he sometimes get under my skin.

The Essential Track: Don’t Stop Me Now

Up Next: The Cars

The Cars

Now this is pop rock I can get behind! That three part opening attack of pure hits is so fun in Good Times Roll, My Best Friend’s Girl, and Just What I Needed. I always forget how many songs this band has over its career that were big. I also can’t hear Moving in Stereo without the iconic scene from Fast Times at Ridgemont High, and You’re All I’ve Got Tonight adds yet another highlight. Just an easy and fun album to fly through this afternoon.

The Essential Track: Just What I Needed

Up Next: Talking Heads - More Songs About Buildings and Food

Talking Heads - More Songs About Buildings and Food

Given the little electronic flourishes that dart around this album, Brian Eno’s presence is surely felt on this album. However, what makes this album great are the driving rhythms, especially from Found A Job through Stay Hungry - I mean that is a f@ck of a run there. And then the groove that kicks in for Take Me to the River. Both come together for The Big Country, which plays a bit with a little twang, but comes back to that killer rhythm. This is a really great stretch of album. All that said, and the first half is really good too. It the second half of this album is on another level.

The Essential Track: Take Me to the River

Up Next: Devo - Q: Are We Not Men, A: We Are Devo!

Devo - Q: Are We Not Men?, A: We Are Devo!

Taking the new wave nerd rock of Talking Heads, and turning the weirdness dial all the way up is probably the easiest way to describe this band. And while they are certainly goofy and weird, there’s also a lot more than meets the eye here. This again is an album and comes into focus in the second half, where the herky jerky weirdness has settled in and they are just pushing things around in some really good ways. Granted, the opening Uncontrollable Urge is fantastic and near the top this album has to offer, but it’s the run of Jocko Homo, Too Much Paranoias, Gut Feeling, and Come Back Jonee that really put this band into more focus. I can’t say I am a member of the cult, but at least paint me impressed.

The Essential Track: Come Back Jonee

Up Next: Wire - Chairs Missing

Wire - Chairs Missing

I am not sure if I am better calibrated now to late 70s punk than when I listened to Pink Flag, but I found this album to be more enjoyable by a decent margin. There’s some real quick drive-by songs here too, but there’s a better helping of songs that build, like Marooned, the combo of Being Sucked In Again and Heartbeat, Mercy, the cool as hell I Am the Fly that feels like if you crossed say Tremor Christ and Bugs, and Used To, which finished the album on an epic build.

The Essential Track: I Am the Fly

Up Next: Television - Adventure

Television - Adventure

I wasn’t quite sure what to expect with this one, mostly because the hype machine on Marquee Moon (and deservedly so) is so intense that I don’t think I have seen anyone really talk about this album. This is a shame since this one is nearly as great. Just to start with, Foxhole, and Ain’t That Nothin’ are two profoundly great rock track. Careful and Carried Away were both worthy of highlight mentions while The Fire’s jam is so effin’ good matching a great rhythm and a great lead together. Glory is also a real good one here, and I can’t get the title track out of my head. I really wish I heard these guys sooner. What a band.

The Essential Track: Ain’t That Nothin’

Up Next: The Feelies - Crazy Rhythms

liebzz wrote:

The Cars

Now this is pop rock I can get behind! That three part opening attack of pure hits is so fun in Good Times Roll, My Best Friend’s Girl, and Just What I Needed. I always forget how many songs this band has over its career that were big. I also can’t hear Moving in Stereo without the iconic scene from Fast Times at Ridgemont High, and You’re All I’ve Got Tonight adds yet another highlight. Just an easy and fun album to fly through this afternoon.

The Essential Track: Just What I Needed

Up Next: Talking Heads - More Songs About Buildings and Food

Top 20, maybe top 10 album of all time. OF ALL TIME.

Also, I need to listen to X-Ray Spex. Not sure why I haven't done so already.

Are they similar to XTC at all?

Ello Sailor wrote:Also, I need to listen to X-Ray Spex. Not sure why I haven't done so already.

Are they similar to XTC at all?

I don’t think so?

Punk with horns probably describes it best in the fewest words as possible.