The four hundred and fifty-seventh album: #457 The Cramps - Songs the Lord Taught Us
It's always welcome to get something different from an album. The Cramps' mix of punk and rockabilly - quite a modern sound in the day mixed with such a deliberate throwback - is still an interesting mix, even if both genres are quite old now - rockabilly just feels like that much more of a throwback going through this list.
Lyrically, the album is fine, and the strength of its music mostly lies in the moments where it relies on the fusion of genres to create its throwback mood. There's a lot to find in here, but it feels as its best when they most try to do their own thing.
The one hundred and sixty-fourth classical recording: #459 Richard Strauss - Violin Sonata
There is a delicate sound to this sonata, the lone violin really shining in the second improvisation movement. There isn't a constant variety on a theme that's as visible, nothing bombastic or in your face about it, but an engaging longer piece that's set up to keep your attention and sound pleasant to listen to.
The four hundred and fifty-sixth album: #456 AC/DC - Back In Black
It feels like Back In Black is more of the same for AC/DC - loud heavy metal that doesn't stop for the ten tracks this album goes on for. It's not the most inventive, true, but it keeps hitting that sweet spot that drives you through this. There's nothing special, but this is so good at providing the heavy metal sound I crave that it simply works.
The one hundred and fourty-second book: #082 The Red and the Black - Stendhal
After The Betrothed, it's been a welcome twist to get The Red and the Black's more cynical take on romance. Its lead a more deceptive character, his story of enlightenement mostly for fame and to court several women. His rise also proves his undoing, as much from his love as how he annoyed the aristocracy whose station he started to rise towards. It references the history of the day and a lot of the plot is somewhat informed by it, but it is only there in the background of the novel. It makes for an interesting, engaging read for the most parts, as long as you don't get too lost in the names.
The one hundred and eighty-seventh TV show: #973 Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey
It's always difficult to follow up on a classic and, for me, the original Cosmos was one of those, bringing us in the world of science, showing it and effectively connecting us to it, including a look at the future and the challenges our world faces that science warns us for. For most of its run, the Neil deGrasse Tyson headed run lives up to that. He is a fascinating presenter, summarizing and teaching the complicated matters in an accessible way, both telling us more about what we knew already and putting what we already knew in its wider context. It's incredibly fascinating when it does so. It lost us more at its more pessimistic looks, and we felt the climate change episode went too far beyond - not that we don't believ eit, but it's a topic that gets hard to listen to and deal with when the science of it just get ignored. Similarly, while the history of science sections are interesting, some episodes focus too much of them (and perhaps overemphasize individual scientists over the shared work that helps progress) when it would be more interesting to get the science behind the story.
It sounds like the sequel series has more of what I look for, in part looking at distant worlds, and I look forward to hearing more stories and learn more about our universe.
The four hundred and fifty-fifth album: #455 Dexys Midnight Runners - Searching for the Young Soul Rebels
There's a mix of influences at play in this album, with a heavy punk feel on what's notionally a (blue-eyed) soul album, with some hints of ska and other influences that I can't always make sense of. It's mostly a pleasant listen, if one that doesn't always have as much of an impact - it just feels difficult to connect to all of these, perhaps because I don't know where these match my tastes.
The one hundred and sixty-third classical recording: #129 Joseph Haydn - Symphony no. 45, "Farewell"
You don't always hear gentler pieces come from symphonies, but in Farewell it happens - like a drawn out goodbye, it's slow, sad in places and while it has some moments of excitement in it, there are also many others where it stays restrained. It's clearest at the end, where the musicians gradually leave the stage, leaving just the violins to play the end - it's a theatrical move that fits the themes well, with an appropriate downbeat ending that follows through on all those themes. As abstract as the music can be, it feels amazing how much more on point it is now.
The four hundred and fifty-fourth album: #454 Adam and the Ants - Kings of the Wild Frontier
Adam and the Ants bring new wave with a punk attitude to the music - loose, rocky and fairly open, the repetitive guitars overlaid on more interesting tunes. It's a bit distracting, but it works most of the time - I just don't think it makes for the most compelling album, with even something like Jolly Roger feeling a bit too loose to work in their style.
The four hundred and fifty-third album: #453 The Specials - The Specials
Although still heavily influenced by ska, The Specials brings a bit more to the table than that. They are angrier, full of energy, with the usual laid back ska style replaced with the anger we've gotten with rock music. Punk is a clear influence, although the fusion with ska really puts it in a different place. It goes between ska filtered through punk and punk filtered through ska, depending on the mood the track is going for, and it's an explosive mix because of those contrasts. Rather than staying on a single emotional level, which can get quite wearing in both of these genres, they combine here to create a flow that becomes more engaging rather than being exhausting.
The one hundred and sixty-second classical recording: #175 Luigi Cherubini - Medee
As always, it's difficult to get the full breadth of an opera when you're listening without a translation of the lyrics. I know the rough story, but the opera's music doesn't give me enough to hold on to to really follow it. What really stands out though is Medea's role, which feels like a real tour de force for the performer and, in this version, is Maria Callas' role for a reason. Her voice is strong, emotional and keeps its depth. It's an amazing story to listen to, even without as much of the context.
The four hundred and fifty-second album: #452 Gary Numan - The Pleasure Principle
We've got an album here that's both predictable in what it covers - Numan's style is one I've covered in the reviews of his songs before - but also gives it variety while staying recognisable. The new wave melodies differ between the songs, but the underlying drum beat is always there and always feels the same, while there isn't much variety in his vocals. That works to create the atmosphere and feeling though, creating a strong throughline that's assuring in its own way.