The four hundred and ninety-fifth album: #495 ABBA - The Visitors
The book contains two ABBA albums on its lists. The Visitors, however, feels quite a stand out work, with the music less disco poppy and more mature and at times a bit darker. It still has their sound, but it feels like they're experimenting a lot more than before. Considering what was happening in the group, When All Is Said And Done is a really powerful standout. Two For the Price of One is the only negative standout - aside from the vocals, it just doesn't feel like it matches the tone of the album anywhere else. Still, this is probably Abba's album that connects with me most, fitting my sensibilities most. It's raw and emotional at times, with so much breaking through the production that hits so much better.
The one hundred and seventy-eighth classical recording: #411 Pablo de Sarasate - Zigeunerweisen
As one of the shorter pieces, Zigeunerweisen makes its impact quite early on. The soloist's violin mostly tells a sad story, with a muted orchestra supporting but never drawing focus - it makes for a nice, gentle support.
The four hundred and ninety-fourth album: #494 Rush - Moving Pictures
I really enjoyed this album and, in a way that's not that typical of my usual feelings, especially appreciated the extended instrumental tracks. They were so well crafted and specific that they made for a lovely journey that felt like it didn't need the vocals a lot of the time.
The four hundred and ninety-third album: #493 Tom Tom Club - Tom Tom Club
As a band that originated from the Talking Heads, we get a somewhat different sound from the Tom Tom Club. As much as it has its experimental moments, it also has a more traditional sound, with some of the harmonies and simpler songs really feeling like a throwback to the fifties and sixties. Under the Boardwalk, for example, really is structured like a classic track if not for the various distortions and synthesizer sounds that appear around the edges of the songs. It's very commercial, sure, and not as innovative, but it's at times subversive in how it does that. It doesn't feel like something that is its own major standout track, but it's so much fun to listen to.
The one hundred and seventy-seventh classical recording: #429 Alexander Borodin - String Quartet no. 2
Don't have much to say about this one - it's a lovely piece of music, performed well. It's not too complicated, just one that's easy to keep track of and listen to.
The one hundred and fourty-eighth book: #87 The Nose - Nikolai Gogol
The Nose was a quick read - a short story that took me about half an hour to read through, which felt right for the tone of the story. In short, a barber finds a nose in a loaf of bread, which turns out to be a commissioner's, and the missing body part lives a life of its own for some time. It's a commentary on class and vanity and how society reacts to it, with there never been an explanation. It's a fun read, though, even if some of the satire doesn't fit our current experience.
The four hundred and ninety-second album: #492 Bobby Womack - The Poet
The Poet is a more modern soul album, which means it manages to avoid the pitfalls that annoyed me in earlier tracks - with disco on the way out, the long dance breaks are gone and instead there is a longer real rhythm section in each of the tracks that's still quite enjoyable, and just a lot more variety in a track. I really felt myself bopping along to the music several times as I was listening.
The one hundred and fourty-seventh book: #86 Father Goriot - Honore de Balzac
The tragedy of Father Goriot builds through the novel, only becoming clear at the end. The titular Father Goriot is seen throughout the book as an odd father figure, somewhat destitute and made fun of by those around him, even as some of our protagonists take more to him. Only slowly do we find out about his daughters, who he spent his wealth on to give them good marriages, but who desert him when the money runs out. It's sad, a comment on the social mobility of the time, and quite a sad read. It's not always the easiest read, but the observations of Honore de Balzac ring true here in a wait that still feels quite accessible.
The four hundred and ninety-first album: #491 Bauhaus - Mask
While I certainly don't mind dark tracks or more depressing music, gothic rock is one where it pushes it too far for me. Mask is very theatrical in its darkness and sound and it's too much for me. A track like Hollow Hills strikes the balance into being creepy, but the title track Mask takes it so far, for example, that it's almost farcical. It feels like it goes for a specific audience, at least for a modern audience, and just isn't as engaging of a sound now
The one hundred and seventy-sixth classical recording: #435 Johannes Brahms - Symphony no. 3
As much as I talk about the more aggressive, wilder pieces in here, it's also nice to have a piece like this symphony, one where it's less about the bombast, but it feels more stately. It's quick, it's formal, but it's still big without going extremely loud with these sounds. The lack of loud brass instruments creates a more striking sound, one that gets you listening more intently and keeps it more in depth. It still retains its majesty.