The five hundred and fourty-second album: #542 Echo and the Bunnymen - Ocean Rain
Following their earlier albums, Ocean Rain takes Echo and the Bunnymen into more of a new wave direction. It sounds fine, hitting all the right buttons, but I can't say it's been a very exciting album either. Well performed, perhaps, but not anything inspiring.
The five hundred and fourty-first album: #541 Tina Turner - Private Dancer
Tina Turner's fifth solo album is a strong one, really hitting the highs of her songs and showing them off well. The title track is a deserved classic, really showing off her range and emotion in her songs, with What's Love Got To Do With It another classic that hits all the notes. It's the personal feel of the lyrics that really hits you through the tracks. As much as this is the level I'd expect from Tina Turner, this is also the album that seems to have defined it, and it's great to listen to.
The one hundred and ninety-ninth TV show: #966 My Love from the Star
Since we've been focusing more on Korean variety, we haven't looked at Korean drama as much as we could have. Having loved My Lovely Sam-Soon and Winter Sonata, as well as various movies, it's a shame it keeps falling by the wayside. There are some ridiculous plot beats and the premises can seem odd or overblown, but they make it work, with a levity that papers over a lot and keeps the mood quite right for it. My Love from the Star has its sci fi elements - the male lead is an extraterrestial who has the standard super powers (strength, super speed, stopping time, that sort of thing). Here it makes for a twist that works really well, having the fantasy elements be a part of the plot without dominating it or making for easy ways out. It lets other people be more competent as he has the tools to go around, for example, the bad guy of the piece, who otherwise stays competent while being villanous.
Special praise in all of this for Jun Ji-hyun, the lead of the show. She goes from a bratty celebrity who you occasionally empathize with to a character with depth, a slow and realistic change as the series progresses. She never loses that edge, but she plays it so incredibly well. Kim Soo-Hyun is as good, but as he plays the distant alien, he doesn't get to play as much, so doesn't stand out as much. The surrounding cast all play their role as well and live up to this, but ithe lead performance is such a tour de force that it puts everything in perspective, until the last episode.
The five hundred and fourtieth album: #540 The Style Council - Cafe Bleu
Although Cafe Bleu is billed as a pop album, it feels like an amalgamation of various popular and different styles that were contemporary with its release. The opening instrumental track is pure jazz while A Gospel suddenly features a heavy rap track. Even the personnel shifts between the different tracks, even if the core group stays involved, and the combinations all work even the tracks all feel so different. The strong points are probably the gentler, new wave ballads, but it's such a good mix of tracks that the album shines everywhere.
The five hundred and thirty-ninth album: #539 The Replacements - Let It Be
More than anything, Let It Be surprised me. It started off as a standard, hard post punk album, the metal and rock influence coming through everywhere, but by the time rock ballad Androgynous played, you really feel a humanity and empathy in these tracks that defy the expectations you might have of the band. It's still crude in places, not everything transfers, but the hits are surprisingly good for what it would normally be.
The five hundred and thirty-eighth album: #538 Prince & The Revolution - Purple Rain
Is it a cop out to say here that this is a Prince album, so you know what to expect? It has the classic tracks Purple Rain and When Doves Cry, all very familiar. The meticulously crafted R&B and pop music is overlaid with vocals that are raw and full of emotion, a contrast that brings out the song so much more than if either side was lacking. It really and directly hits you, which is an accomplishment on its own even without the catchiness of some of the tracks, the set up that's elaborate but never too much, skirting a line that works so well as just a real visionary sound.
The five hundred and thirty-seventh album: #537 Van Halen - 1984
With Van Halen's glam rock, you pretty much know what you're going to get and 1984 simply doesn't disappoint in this regard. Jump is a deserved classic, but so many other tracks have that feel-good loud feeling that is pushed by its unremittenant music, the underlying drive really being directed by its exuberant vocals. The lyrics aren't too complicated, but work well with the tone and the feel of the album.
The one hundred and ninety-sixth classical recording: #502 Richard Strauss - Till Eulenspiegels lustige Streiche
The chaotic nature of this piece mimics the mischief of the story it is based on, a cacophony of sounds that combine various characters and stories (often well represented by a group of instruments) that continue to give an impression of what's going on. It conveys the feeling quite well even and even a brief guide tells you all else you need to know when listening. It's a masterful small piece of storytelling that stands on its own so well.
The five hundred and thirty-sixth album: #536 Minor Threat - Out of Step
Out of Step is ultimately a loud, hardcore punk album that brings a sound that it felt we'd started to lose at this point in the British bands. It works well at producing that sounds, but its short twenty (or so) minute length is enough to get it, much more than that and it would have been too much.
The five hundred and thirty-fifth album: #535 Cocteau Twins - Treasure
When describing this album earlier, I called it Kate Bush with a rock band. While not quite the same, the album features similar ethereal vocals, but backed with a far more aggressive rock sound instead. It feels deeply gothic and mystical in a way that works quite well, drawing you into this dream-like world.