Lots of people go into "Amnesiac" expecting nothing more than subpar "Kid A" rejects, but it's actually much better than that would imply. While it's often referred to as the dumping ground for "Kid A" B-sides and whatnot, "Amnesiac" is its own entity entirely, with an atmosphere and mood completely unique to itself. It's far more jazz-influenced than any other Radiohead record, even considering the eclectic jazz-isms of "The National Anthem" ... read more

Radiohead's magnum opus, "Kid A", sounds much like the album cover looks: desolate, vast and cold, with dramatic peaks and valleys the whole way. I consider this to be much more of an electronic album than a rock album, because most of the record is comprised of synthesized music (from ambient to progressive electronic) and the rock-informed sections are nothing like most traditional rock music. You'll hear a guitar and you may hear some rhythmic drumming, but even then they almost ... read more

Before Radiohead dove head-first into fully electronic territory with the album "Kid A" (and "The King of Limbs" much later on), they mastered alternative rock with their 1997 triumph "OK Computer". It's hard to describe how genuinely powerful this album is to someone who hasn't heard it before, although I imagine most users on this site have at least been told about it over and over again. So instead of trying to explain why this is one of the greatest works of ... read more

Just less than two years after their infamously average debut, Radiohead pull through with a surprisingly outstanding sophomore effort that puts "Pablo Honey" to shame. While "The Bends" does indulge in a few common alternative rock tropes that appeared on the album that preceded it, it smashes everyone's expectations and begins to forge the legacy that Radiohead would become known for. This album, while definitely not the peak of their career, kickstarted a streak of ... read more

Radiohead's notoriously underwhelming studio debut, "Pablo Honey", remains one of the most perplexing albums in the British band's entire discography. At the time of its release, there really wasn't much to discuss--and that's exactly why it's so odd today. The fact that Radiohead were once an average grunge band is an odd one to stomach. However, putting aside the mastery that they would exemplify later on in their career, this record is very, very average. As we all know, there just ... read more

Lil Uzi Vert is like a caricature of a generic trap rapper. At the very least there's some semblance of conceptuality here as opposed to the aimless brag-fests that other East Coast rap albums tend to become, but musically, it's not much better. Boring, vaguely "psychedelic" production laces a painfully long tracklist that isn't worth the wasted hour it asks of the listener. Don't bother with this one; merely cashing in on popular trends in modern rap music.

pros:
- ... read more

The witch house phenomenon that occurred in the early 2010's was definitely an odd flash in the pan for electronic music. For as short of a time in the limelight as it had, its influence was far-reaching, eventually leading to long-lasting effects everywhere; from pop music to hip hop, one can still note a palpable witch house influence in the works of contemporary rap collectives such as the critically-lauded Drain Gang and...the less critically-lauded GothBoiClique. That being said, though, ... read more

In the modern era, Interpol is one of the most famous post-punk bands in the world. They spearheaded the post-punk revival movement in the 2000's along with bands like The Strokes and Franz Ferdinand, and nowadays if you were to ask an average individual about the genre, they would probably name Interpol...if they could even name a single artist in the first place. And while it can sometimes be frustrating when people consider a genre home to bands like Television, Talking Heads, Killing Joke, ... read more

"2012 - 2017" was Nicolas Jaar's first release under the Against All Logic name, and it certainly made a big impact. I struggle to think of a single bigger hit in house music over the past decade than this record, and that's because of its immense crossover appeal. While it was still huge with devout house fans, it was still accessible enough to lock outsiders into the accessible grooves that pulsed through its eleven tracks. An electronic highlight of the decade.

pros:
- bouncy, fun ... read more

The nostalgia bomb that was the vaporwave phenomenon, all wrapped up into one neat mixtape. "Blank Banshee 0" features some of the most iconic vaporwave songs in the entirety of the genre's history (see "B:/ Start Up" and "Dreamcast"), and it still holds up as a very good modern electronic album. A standout of the genre, and proof that not all mainstream vaporwave is comprised of slowed-down Diana Ross samples and cheesy smooth jazz.

pros:
- great production
- ... read more

Okay, credit where credit's due: Floridian rapper Denzel Curry runs laps around the rest of the contemporary trap rap game, and he's way more innovative than most rappers in his scene. As an MC, he raps very well and his presence is immediately noticeable. His lyrics, while regularly falling into braggadocious hip hop pastiche (e.g. "I can't see the floor, stackin' money, fuck a hater / Free bands, cash flow / Bread so long, boutta buy the whole mall" from "CASH MANIAC | CAZH ... read more

Pantha du Prince triumphs with his latest LP "Conference of Trees", his best release since the expansive, hypnotically minimalist structures that made up 2010's "Black Noise". More electroacoustic and modern classical influences rear their heads here than in some of Prince's past works, but I definitely appreciate the change of pace.

pros:
- new ground for Pantha du Prince
- very atmospheric

cons:
- not a good place to start for newcomers

I must admit, I've been cracking down on albums that I consider "generic" pretty hard lately. All things bland, repetitive, and generally unoriginal--they've all been barraged with poor scores from me. Hell, I was very generous to Zomboy's "The Dead Symphonic EP", and all that project got was a 55/100. "High Street Creeps" and "Forever", though, weren't as lucky, receiving 34/100's and 47/100's respectively. Perhaps that's my fault for wanting originality ... read more

Feed Me's latest full-length, "High Street Creeps", is one of the safest and most offensively bland house albums I've heard in a while. For one, the rhythms of these songs are nothing special. In fact, I don't even think they're all that danceable to begin with, and club pandering was one of the only reasons I could come up with for this record's existence. They just keep plodding along at average tempos, with some bit-crushed sound effect or blaring rave synth coming in every measure ... read more

Keeley Forsyth's debut is a solid entry into the contemporary folk canon, but not much makes it stand out. It has a nice and dark atmosphere to it, but so do plenty of other singer-songwriter releases from the past decade. Still, I highly enjoyed my time with Debris, as short as it may have been.

pros:
- nice soundscape
- good instrumentation

cons:
- very short (<30 minutes long)

I'll never understand reggaeton.

pros:
- at least it's better than other reggaeton

cons:
- it's still reggaeton

Eh. Not very big on this kind of dubstep. I have some nostalgia for this EP in particular because one of my best friends is a big fan of Zomboy, so some of my memories with him have this as the soundtrack. Nostalgia aside, though, it's very generic brostep that feels like a slap in the face to older dubstep pioneers such as Burial and Skream. Perhaps that was its intent? Whatever the case, the music just isn't for me, although I can appreciate the fact that Zomboy is at least marginally better ... read more

Ironically, even an intentionally br00tal, animalistic style of music--such as Code Orange's--gets old after you repeat it over and over again. Cranking up the volume and breaking stuff is fun at first, but like all ideas, it becomes stale.

pros:
- fun at times
- good guitar riffs

cons:
- painfully repetitive
- bad vocals

Hands-down one of the best LPs of the decade. It may be the stereotypical post-punk fan's choice, but that's because this is easily one of the most unique and hypnotic post-punk albums in years. "Relatives in Descent" is loud and challenging, yet very intentional to a calculated degree--a song will drone on and on to push the listener to their limits and crush their skulls in with said song's intention. An incredibly powerful artistic statement in every right. Protomartyr's ... read more

I still remember when this album dropped. I wasn't that knowledgable about music at the time--I couldn't really tell the difference between a good or a bad song and I still wasn't sure why I loved certain songs--but even then, the impact that XXYYXX had on electronic musicians and bedroom beatsmiths worldwide was palpably potent. Marcel Everett's self-titled and sole studio album under the XXYYXX moniker is an atmospheric journey through psychedelic synths, acid-laced bass lines, and ... read more