The one hundred and ninetieth classical recording: #477 Pietro Mascagni - Cavalleria Rusticana
There's obviously a lot of grandeur in this opera, its full impact resonating through the piece with the build ups as you'd expect. It has lacked the hook - it doesn't have anything specific that really grabs me and draws me in, instead it feels like it mostly gives me similar vibes to other operas.
The five hundred and twentieth album: #520 Tom Waits - Swordfishtrombones
The blues tracks that run through this album are the ones that suit Waits' voice perfectly, raw and rough as it tells songs that sound sad and rough. It's one that gets layered in with a far more experimental sound, sounding pretty good while it does to be honest. It's that weird sort of balance that sounds just right to listen to here that makes for a beautiful album - especially with how gently it ends.
The five hundred and nineteenth album: #519 The The - Soul Mining
Two tracks in, with This Is the Day, the feeling of this album really began to crystalize. The first side's catchy synth pop that's just really enjoyable. The hooks stick in you, but it's so simple it really works. Not plain, but simple fun throughout. The other side goes more esoteric, with a haunting Twilight Hour followed by a ghostly opening to the title track Soul Mining. Its darker feeling is more interesting, and while the underlying hooks are still there, it's not as easy to listen to. It's quite a clear delineation between the two sides, each with their own uses.
The one hundred and eighty-ninth classical recording: #51 Michel-Rachard de Lalande - Grand Motets
While de Lalande has written a lot of motets, the list has mentioned a specific album whose tracks I've focused on for this. The age of the piece shows its focus on the religious music as much as its title does, and it still focuses on the choral parts of the music even as the accompanying music gets more moments to shine as it feels like it gets bigger. There's a step here it's taking, and it sounds beautiful in a smaller way.
The five hundred and eighteenth album: #518 REM - Murmur
I probably prepared myself for this early, knowing what was coming, but it did feel like Murmur was an album that asked for more intense listening than others do. It becomes a great, in depth pop album with some really interesting tracks. I feel like the best is still to come for them, but this was already incredibly good.
The five hundred and seventeenth album: #517 Def Leppard - Pyromania
There's something about Def Leppard's glam metal that ended up appealing to me a lot more than I thought - an abundance of energy and cheer that gets paired well with the occasional darker track. It feels like I can see a lot better how this would work well live, an overwhelming sound that hits the right up beats to keep that energy going.
The one hundred and eighty-eighth classical recording: #740 George Gershwin - An American in Paris
The tone poem An American in Paris - that later works were based on - conveys quite well the excitement of being in a foreign city you love. There's the exuberant excitement as you go through, and the smaller sections that don't lose the happiness. You can see how well it would work as the score just listening to it, but even without it, it feels like the laughter and romance are there, contrasting the big with the small.
The five hundred and sixteenth album: #516 Malcolm McLaren - Duck Rock
As much as I know purists have mentioned the issues with the commercialization of hip hop with this album, the lift it gave to the genre for white listeners, and the way it gave me an insight into African music is as valuable. There are a lot of traditional influences in here, combined with still a big spot for black voices that feels to me, at least, to make for a powerful and uplifting album. I don't think it entirely shies away from experimenting, but there's a balance that works really well to my ear.
The five hundred and fifteenth album: #515 Violent Femmes - Violent Femmes
The country punk comes through quite clearly in this, the country intros and throughline often fading away as we get deeper into the punk tracks - it's as much about the tuning and feel of the instruments as it is about the music directly. The songs themselves don't feel the most complex - while occasionally giving some depth, it still feels a lot about mundane problems. It risks straying into pop at time but overall stays quite well mixed between the different trends - easier listening on some tracks than you might think, but with the aggression in there in some places.
The one hundred and eighty-seventh classical recording: #174 Joseph Haydn - Trumpet Concerto
There's something lovely about this concerto, an orchestra piece led by the trumpet that feels like it fits Haydn's style, its speed and melodies feeling a bit like his signature. As a short piece, the abstract nature makes it stand alone, but it is quite a lovely concerto.