MartyMcFly said:

TonyVanDam said:

Between RN and AL, the albums are totally different concepts. It's insane to compare them.
As for the videos, i see your point, though i doubt Madonna intended to copy Janet. Madonna had done military 10 years before AL during the girlie show.

And i wouldn't make Janet the hero in this case, as she was the one who ripped off her brother with the military idea. So technically Michael wins this battle

Biscuit said:

I agree with you. Those albums got so much hype and I still can't get into it. I would also like to add the Scissor Sister's! Their cd is good but it's only have as good as people said it was. People were acting like it was some kind of master piece or something. It's good but it's not all that!

Just discussing albums by artists I like

Madonna - Music
- After the overwhelmingly positive reviews that she got with Ray of Light, Madonna could've put out any old crap (some might make that argument for American Pie) and scored a hit. With Music, I think Madonna rode the coattails of Ray of Light into a critically acclaimed album. Unlike ROL, I think Music is filled with fragments of songs, unfinished ideas, and sophomoric lyrics. I think had this album followed up Erotica or Evita (when it was uncool to like Madonna), she never would've received the 4 star reviews from AMG and Rolling Stone.

U2 - All That You Can't Leave Behind
- Even though I consider it an excellent album, I think that the critics jumped all over it because it was a "return to form". The review section in this month's Blender is a prime example of this; albums like War and How to Dismantle, which are more consistent, get 4 star ratings, while ATYCLB is considered a classic on par with Joshua Tree and Achtung Baby. I'd classify it alongside Zooropa and Pop (both of which I think are great and severly underrated, but not flawless albums).

Janet Jackson - The Velvet Rope
- Still not sure why her fanbase considers this her defining statement. It's overlong, overblown, and cheesy as hell. RN1814 and Control made Janet seem untouchable, and janet. made her seem more human, but TVR showed that deep down, Janet really didn't have as much to say as everone initially thought. Some of the statements on the album just seem really shallow (Spousal abuse is bad, it's ok to be gay, "We all have the need to feel special") and some of them just sound like they were ripped straight from a self-help book ("We need to learn to water our spiritual garden", "You Don't Have to hold on to the pain to hold on to the memory"). I still think that there are 11 or 12 great songs on the album, but I don't consider it Miss Jackson's masterpiece.

REM - Murmur
- Out of their earliest work, I much prefer Reckoning to Murmur. The album is just so impenetratable. It definitely has some excellent songs on it, but I don't think it's as consistent as Reckoning, or their later masterpieces.

Wilco - Yankee Hotel Foxtrot
- Judging by all of the press this album got, I bought it expecting a masterpiece; instead I found an album that felt like it was being intentionally obscure. I'd much rather listen to A Ghost is Born or Summer Teeth. It just seemed to me that the underground was looking for an album or a cause to latch onto, and this album not being released was just that cause. Plus, it seemed to bite Radiohead quite a bit.

David Bowie - Diamond Dogs
- Diamond Dogs really didn't get great critical reviews, but seems to be a fan favorite. I understand that it's a transitional album, but it lacks the strengths of the album that preceeded it, and it lacks the character of the album that followed it. As for the transitional albums in his catalog, I much prefer Stationtostation. I think DD has about 5 great songs and some middling filler inbetween it all.

Prince - O+>
- Not a terrible album, but definitely overlong and overblown; I think the album could afford to be cut in half. The segues need to go, and so does the Tony M shit. From Prince's 90's work, I think Gold and Come are both better, tighter albums.

DavidEye said:

Nuttin wrong with a little heat. It's the children who throw hissy fits that need to stay out of grown folks' convos.

'Around The World In A Day' by Prince(1985)---Yes,I understand what he was trying to do.Yes,I understand that he didn't want to make 'Purple Rain Part Two'.Yes,I understand that this album is a favorite among critics. But I just think it's really overrated,and this stuff is hardly Prince's best work.Honestly,if I never hear "Rapsberry Beret" again,that's fine with me.

What critics? Maybe critics overseas, but American critics were never enamored with that album.

Axchi696 said:

Supernova said:

Ooooh! It hurts

Nova, I will agree that all of Marvin's personal business surrounding Here My Dear does generate a lot of fanfare behind the LP. However, I do think that his pain and anguish comes through on the vocals and the music. The bulk of Marvin's 70s albums revolved around a central theme whether it was a particular subject matter or musical coda. As personal as the album was, I still think the messages in it can be applied to a whole lot of marraiges/divorces out there.

It's okay I still wanna have your babies

DavidEye said:

Agreed. It's a great pop record but still remains my least fave of all his solo Epic studio albums. I'd take The Way You Make Me Feel and Smooth Criminal over Liberian Girl, tho'.
Also, I Just Can't Stop Loving You is a fine, sweet soul ballad. Often overlooked.

Cloudbuster said:

Honestly, so many people here think "Liberian Girl" is the best song on the album. It's beautiful but it also qualifies as nothing but a cute filler.

Cloudbuster said:

Yes but you also like Invincible. 'Nuff said.

Maxwell's Urban Hang Suite. It's supposed 2 make U horny or sumtin'. Not me tho. There's just no passion in the (actually any of his) music. Just 2 much whinin'. .

jacktheimprovident said:

This guy is clearly out to lunch

Axchi696 said:

I agree with a lot of what you're saying here.

VoicesCarry said:

grunge is still going strong, the name just die. What kind of music does Nickelback, Creed, 3 Doors Down, Theory of a Dead Man, Silverchair, Limp Bizkit, Korn, puddle of Mudd etc etc etc etc make??? its grunge.

garnis said:

It's also crap.

Cobain at least had some decent songwriting skills.

VoicesCarry said:

proof you have no idea what you are talking about. Rock will NEVER die. EVER!!!!!

VoicesCarry said:

I think it's rated how it should be. Bedtime Stories is unfocused and trendy. I love a lot of the individual songs, but it just doesn't add up to being one of her best albums although I still really enjoy it. I think the work she did in '94/'95 is one of her best batches of songs. That album gets a major boost when you add in some of the non-album stuff like "I'll Remember", "I Want You", "You'll See" and "Let Down Your Guard".

garnis said:

Of course it will never die, but it's in as poor a state as modern R&B - and that's saying something.

VoicesCarry said:

Whats your alternative?

Most overrated albums.....ANYTHING BY THE FOLLOWING

Bjork
Madonna
Radiohead (with the exception of The Bends)
Tori Anus
Timberlake
P Diddy
50 Cent
Janet Jackson

mynameisnotsusan said:

Who's this website about?

GangstaFam said:

If you're looking for an overrated Madonna album, it's not Ray of Light, it's Music.

garnis said:

Love ya anyway, G!

VoicesCarry said:

You have no idea what you are talking about. What about Arcade Fire, Interpol, Archer Prewitt, Black Mountain, Bloc Party, M83, Spiritualized, Mercury Rev, Shins, Mogwai, And they know us....., My god, the list is long

GangstaFam said:

That was Tori Anus.

garnis said:

Whatever, dude. All you ever do is post "you have no idea what you're talking about" or "_____ is clearly out to lunch."

VoicesCarry said:

same thing, she comes from the ass

VoicesCarry said:

Well what do you expect when you post the kind of crap found in this thread

garnis said:

It's just a fuckin' opinion. Get over it!

VoicesCarry said:

Oh. Thanks for clarifying. Don't know nothin' 'bout her.