The Devil – Blue Stahli
My buddy Mike introduced me to this electronic metal album when we were in high school, and it is just bop after bop. It’s a little bit poppier than Blue Stahli’s self-titled album, with more immediately satisfying harmonies and more energetic, anthemic hooks, but that’s not a bad thing here. The electronic instruments feel aliveContinue reading “The Devil – Blue Stahli”
Jaime – Brittany Howard
This is an album of constant innovation, a prog rock slamdown full of otherworldly harmony and perfectly calibrated rhythms. From the constantly interesting guitar grooves of “History Repeats” to the cinematic zoom-out of “Run To Me”, this album is perpetually confusing and always pleasing to the ear. Playing jagged harmonies with gentle synths, sweet guitarContinue reading “Jaime – Brittany Howard”
Appetite for Destruction – Guns N’ Roses
The members of Guns N’ Roses have an intuitive understanding of music that has never had an equal. Just listen to “Mr. Brownstone”- clearly, there’s some kind of tonality to the opening riff, but it’s not anything I recognize, or anything I can parse through. The swing rhythm of that song focuses hard on theContinue reading “Appetite for Destruction – Guns N’ Roses”
What’s Happened to Soho EP – The Correspondents
I guarantee you this will not be the last time I review The Correspondents, one of my all-time favorite bands, but this album is them at their most oblique and least harmonically functional. There’s no song as wild as the title track, with its chromatic chords, creepy and playful vocals, and absolutely filthy bass; it’sContinue reading “What’s Happened to Soho EP – The Correspondents”
‘Cuz I Love You (Super Deluxe) – Lizzo
Lizzo’s second album is incredible. That was never up for debate. It’s some of the best modern pop you’ll ever hear, immediately calling listeners to attention with the beautiful grooves and vocal harmonies of “Like a Girl”, but, from “Crybaby” on, the album takes a sharp left turn and goes full Prince (but better). IContinue reading “‘Cuz I Love You (Super Deluxe) – Lizzo”
Skeleton Man – Coyote Kid
Are you ready to descend into a world of horror, romance, and trumpet? Skeleton Man is a rock opera about the macabre, named after an anthropomorphization of death and focused on the horrifying creations of a new science. It is very influenced by mariachi music, focusing on the i, VIb, and V chords hard- theContinue reading “Skeleton Man – Coyote Kid”
WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP, WHERE DO WE GO? – Billie Eilish
I originally wrote this review at least a year ago, but it’s still important to talk about the controversy surrounding this album. It’s easy to understand why some people were aghast at it; a 17-year-old woman singing about suicide is worrying, to say the least. Of course, the same people who call her work inappropriateContinue reading “WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP, WHERE DO WE GO? – Billie Eilish”
Scaled and Icy – Twenty One Pilots
Twenty One Pilots has been busy since my last review! I’ve still got to figure out whether to review Trench, which continued and improved on the techniques of blurryface and Vessel, but I know I want to talk about this one. Scaled and Icy represents a completely fresh start for Twenty One Pilots after TylerContinue reading “Scaled and Icy – Twenty One Pilots”
That Was The Year That Was – Tom Lehrer
It’s rare that I find a musical comedy album I enjoy, but there’s a reason Tom Lehrer, the man who first set the periodic table to the tune of the “Major-General’s Song” is such a legend. I actually first heard some of this album in a class on the history of the Cold War- notContinue reading “That Was The Year That Was – Tom Lehrer”
Weezer – Weezer
This is a really great album, and I personally have a strong relationship with this album that I don’t have with any other. It’s full of beautiful guitar work that fits so well with the tonality of Rivers Cuomo’s mellow vocals. Weezer likes to go off of pop harmonies with nice turns, for example, usingContinue reading “Weezer – Weezer”
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse – Various Artists
This soundtrack album for the beautifully animated film Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse keeps to the aesthetic of that high-school comic-book movie with the mellow beats and catchy melodies of modern hip hop. Post Malone and Swae Lee’s “Sunflower” is a standout with its bubbly synths and feel-good rhythm, and it’s a perfect fit as whatContinue reading “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse – Various Artists”
Transgender Dysphoria Blues – Against Me!
You probably know this band from their transcendent jam “Thrash Unreal”, but when their singer Laura Jane Grace came out as trans in 2012, Against Me! accompanied it with the greatest traditional pop punk album of all time. This concept album hits hard with heavy distortion on bright, major-key guitars and even rougher textures onContinue reading “Transgender Dysphoria Blues – Against Me!”
MONTERO – Lil Nas X
Ever since I heard “INDUSTRY BABY (feat. Jack Harlow)”, not a day has gone by where I didn’t think about this man. That’s right, I’m a Jack Harlow superfan. No, seriously, I have had that song stuck in my head again and again, and it is never a negative experience. I think it’s Lil NasContinue reading “MONTERO – Lil Nas X”
If I Can’t Have Love, I Want Power – Halsey
Halsey and Nine Inch Nails working together is a dream come true, and the electronic rock they’ve put together, full of the unique grittiness that each have to bring to the table, is constantly masterful and a joy to listen to. Sure, Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross may not have put their names on theContinue reading “If I Can’t Have Love, I Want Power – Halsey”
A Night at the Opera – Queen
The final album review of my EP’s promotion cycle is the one for “And Then There Are Those Who Choose Their Own Fate”. Writing this song, I felt that the suite was an underutilized device in music; I really liked when songs put together thematically connected disparate sections, and it felt like something gone fromContinue reading “A Night at the Opera – Queen”
Battle Cry – Jagged Row
When I first put together the beginning of “The Locrian Song”, I had the riff, and I said to myself, I should see how this sounds as part of a rock song. My first thought was to take a guitar pattern I thought of as endemic to rock and play it under the riff. InContinue reading “Battle Cry – Jagged Row”
Evolve – Imagine Dragons
When I wrote “Great House of the Captive Lovers” (original title: “Mythos”) in high school, I didn’t know exactly what triplet time was. I just had a song idea, and I knew there was a place I wanted to go with it. AWOLNATION’s “Sail”, Imagine Dragons’ “Believer”, and later Bishop Briggs’ “River” occupy a specificContinue reading “Evolve – Imagine Dragons”
“Heroes” – David Bowie
As part of the promotion for my new EP, Demos from Safety, I’m posting reviews of some of the works which inspired each song on the album. I’ll admit that the inspiration of “Heroes” on my song “The Difference” was a bit roundabout. I had spent some time studying Bowie’s key changes and consciously attempting toContinue reading ““Heroes” – David Bowie”
Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends – Coldplay
As part of the promotion for my new EP, Demos from Safety, I’m posting reviews of some of the works which inspired each song on the album. My song “Immortality” opens on the chord progression to “Violet Hill”, something that wasn’t intentional but definitely makes sense; the main thrust of the song, a lament after allContinue reading “Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends – Coldplay”
The Black Parade – My Chemical Romance
As part of the promotion for my new EP, Demos from Safety, I’m posting reviews of some of the works which inspired each song on the album. I didn’t know that you could end a song by just smashing everything together into a multifaceted waltz-time cacophony until I heard MCR’s “The End.” That’s the wayContinue reading “The Black Parade – My Chemical Romance”
Demos from Safety EP – Jack Lavin
My EP is out! You can check it out here. I’m very proud of the work I’ve put together, so please give it a listen if you like my taste in music. Over the next few weeks, I’ll be posting about some of the albums which inspired me as I was making this; to myContinue reading “Demos from Safety EP – Jack Lavin”
Quadrophenia – The Who
I have no idea what the story of this album is, at all, but I love the music of this album so much. “Love Reign O’er Me” is an incredible 3/4 jam that deserves all of its foreshadowing and is too profound to be explained; if you have never heard it, I beg you toContinue reading “Quadrophenia – The Who”
A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out – Panic! at the Disco [cw: sexual assault]
This isn’t going to be a typical post, where I talk about something I love. When I originally wrote this, I just wanted to drone on about how I feel about this album. I spent a good bit of time in a Panic! at the Disco phase, and I have an encyclopedic knowledge and sincereContinue reading “A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out – Panic! at the Disco [cw: sexual assault]”
★ – David Bowie
David Bowie’s greatest album, ★, was released two days before his early death and needs to be heard. If you haven’t heard this album, drop everything and go listen to it. If you have heard this album, you know what I’m talking about. I mean, there’s a song in a made-up language on there, andContinue reading “★ – David Bowie”
The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars – David Bowie
God, I don’t want to write any more about this album after taking that entire class on Bowie, but it definitely belongs on this list. Bowie’s follow-up to his excellent albums The Man Who Sold The World and Hunky Dory may not have kept their complexity, but it had a real direction. Ziggy Stardust, aContinue reading “The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars – David Bowie”
Take This to Your Grave – Fall Out Boy
Take This to Your Grave! Yes, Stump has said on record that he wants it burned, but, if it were any other band, this album would be a well-remembered classic. Of course, it’s Fall Out Boy, so it often has to take a backseat to their other epic albums. Still, I absolutely love the insanityContinue reading “Take This to Your Grave – Fall Out Boy”
Save Rock and Roll – Fall Out Boy
I always think of this as a rock opera because I first experienced this album by watching The Young Blood Chronicles (their hour-long music video for every song on the album), and that’s actually my recommendation of how to experience Save Rock and Roll, because it’s cool. That’s not really what I’m here to talkContinue reading “Save Rock and Roll – Fall Out Boy”
PAX AM Days EP – Fall Out Boy
This EP is only 13 minutes, so, thusly, I can declare the whole of it to be my favorite Fall Out Boy song. Seriously, all eight songs on this EP are relentless bops reminiscent of a long-past golden age in punk music. You can clearly tell that these songs (with an average length of aContinue reading “PAX AM Days EP – Fall Out Boy”
American Idiot – Green Day
You’ve heard a lot of this album, but you probably haven’t heard the awesome jam that is “Letterbomb” or dissected “Homecoming” down to specific notes. Yes, “Boulevard of Broken Dreams” is great, but this album really shines where it eschews the four-chord progression and just plays some loud chords, finds something else to do, andContinue reading “American Idiot – Green Day”
Dookie – Green Day
Oh yeah! Punk rock’s never had such incredibly catchy grooves as in this huge 90s hit. Their rhythms are as complex as they are natural, and their chords are fun sonified. That D-A-B-G progression on “Having a Blast” is just wonderful, and the syncopated constant guitar hits just fall perfectly. The drums on this albumContinue reading “Dookie – Green Day”
Post Mortem – Black Tide
This album is one of those albums where I can just gush and gush over so many of the songs. “Fight ‘Til The Bitter End” is chill and it’s metal and is uncompromising on both of those fronts; the chorus has such a wonderfully relaxing groove and I love it. “Ashes” is a brilliant useContinue reading “Post Mortem – Black Tide”
City of Evil – Avenged Sevenfold
I know I’m only reviewing albums I love, but this is a highlight even here. “Beast and the Harlot” and “Bat Country” are two of my favorite songs, and they fill me with absolute glee. I know Synyster hates playing the brilliant arpeggios of “Beast and the Harlot”, but they knew a freaking whole-step keyContinue reading “City of Evil – Avenged Sevenfold”
All Hallows EP – AFI
Yes, this EP is only four songs, but it’s so much fun. AFI’s a great band, and they’re experts in using harmony to create a velvety, intriguing sound that can be heard on “Girl’s Not Grey”, “Love Like Winter”, and “Snow Cats”, but this is not that, nor is it any of the well-produced speedContinue reading “All Hallows EP – AFI”
Robot Face – Caravan Palace
What a lovely album! A fusion of bopping electronic music and 20’s swing that just makes you want to grab a partner and dance. “Lone Digger” is the obvious standout, a beautiful shuffle track with a cool horn section and great jamming over the i-VIIb-VIb-V progression, but I was blown away by the way everythingContinue reading “Robot Face – Caravan Palace”
Black Reign – Avenged Sevenfold
This compilation of four Avenged Sevenfold songs made for Call of Duty collects songs with similar motifs, and I really like each of these songs. The choruses of “Mad Hatter” and “Not Ready To Die” feature M. Shadows gloriously wailing in the major scale despite that they’ve been playing in minor for the rest ofContinue reading “Black Reign – Avenged Sevenfold”
What Separates Me From You – A Day To Remember
This album is fun more than anything. The obvious standout is “All I Want”, with those hip-hop lyrics and that awesome groove in the vocals, drums, audible bass, and guitar; it’s a punk rock classic from the drum fills to the vocal harmonies, and they do some really interesting stuff. (I’m still trying to figureContinue reading “What Separates Me From You – A Day To Remember”
good kid, m.A.A.d. city (Deluxe) – Kendrick Lamar
Kendrick Lamar brilliantly covers a Compton upbringing in the incredible concept album good kid, m.A.A.d city; I don’t really know how to talk about the themes of this album, because I honestly don’t know what he’s been through, but it’s absolutely right that Kendrick be awarded a Pulitzer prize for talking about this environment. AsContinue reading “good kid, m.A.A.d. city (Deluxe) – Kendrick Lamar”
Back from the Dead – Adler
Steven Adler is best known for drumming on Guns N’ Roses’ Appetite for Destruction, but it’s important we don’t forget the awesome melodies of this underappreciated 2012 album; “Back from the Dead” and “Another Version of the Truth” are exceptional jams that clearly keep the great groove of Appetite but have completely different (and, byContinue reading “Back from the Dead – Adler”
Now, Not Yet – half-alive
This album is the kind of work I could gush over as a music theory guy, but its complexity is oh so very accessible. It’s got this Bastille/Sir Sly vibe, but it’s jam-packed full of complex jazz chords, Jacob Collier-style vocal harmonies, interesting rhythms, and Japanese Breakfast-esque engaging sound effects. They hit you with polytonalityContinue reading “Now, Not Yet – half-alive”
Sabbath Bloody Sabbath – Black Sabbath
This is an incredible album that I’ve listened to for years. My favorite song Black Sabbath have ever put out is “Sabbra Cadabra”, Track 4, (I remember trying to transcribe the riff a couple years back and thinking it skipped a quarter-beat and was in like 23/16 or something, but I’m pretty sure it’s straightContinue reading “Sabbath Bloody Sabbath – Black Sabbath”
The Stage – Avenged Sevenfold
Do you like music, but wish it was, well, more so? This album is for you! It’s filled with awesome complex work; you may have already heard the Grammy-nominated title track and gotten used to its epic Fm-E riff and beautiful solos, but immediately following that are the beautiful triplet riffs and 4/4 chorus ofContinue reading “The Stage – Avenged Sevenfold”
Lemonade – Beyonce
You know, I had heard this album was good, but I was knocked over by the vocal opening to “Pray You Catch Me”. This album is incredible. You’ve got some really cool scale stuff from a theory perspective, like the Lydian/Ionian mode mixture on “Hold Up” and the move three steps down on the scaleContinue reading “Lemonade – Beyonce”
XPeriments from Dark Phoenix – Hans Zimmer
You’ve heard Hans Zimmer in movies, creating the soundtrack to epic stories, but, on this album, he lets loose and writes a love letter to music itself. They could never put these songs in a superhero film for obvious reasons and I’m okay with that; this work is innovative, wacky, pretentious, and attention-grabbing, all wonderfulContinue reading “XPeriments from Dark Phoenix – Hans Zimmer”
Love Death Immortality – The Glitch Mob
You may know the Glitch Mob from their incredible original songs “Fortune Days”, “We Can Make the World Stop”, and “Animus Vox”; their collaboration with Ramin Djawadi on the television show Person of Interest; or their epic remix of “Seven Nation Army”. I’m here to tell you today that you should know their more fast-paced,Continue reading “Love Death Immortality – The Glitch Mob”
Rust in Peace – Megadeth
This is an incredible album. “Holy Wars… The Punishment Due” is a legendary song for good reason, with the greatest eight measures of guitar ever written at 4:21, perfect riffs throughout the whole song that perfectly fit the groove and establish the song’s harmonic choices, and some really cool thrash hemiola in the ending riff.Continue reading “Rust in Peace – Megadeth”
Apocalyptic Love (Deluxe Edition) – Slash
Apocalyptic Love is a personal favorite of mine. It’s just fantastic to hear Slash rip through those constant expertly written riffs, and there’s no comparison for Myles Kennedy’s wild, banshee-like vocals. Sure, the same goes for World on Fire (especially “30 Years to Life”), and Slash’s self-titled debut album is also always fantastic (especially “Sahara”),Continue reading “Apocalyptic Love (Deluxe Edition) – Slash”
Pastel Blues – Nina Simone
Nina Simone is a master and this is an incredible album. It may be an album of covers, but these are the primary versions of these songs. Her singing is incredible and I don’t understand how she does things with her voice that not any other artist could pull off; I wouldn’t say it’s “perfect”Continue reading “Pastel Blues – Nina Simone”
The Bastards – Palaye Royale
I’m honestly surprised to be putting this album on the list; at first glance, it’s a continuation of Boom Boom Room (which, by the way, was incredible, and you should hear “Mr. Doctor Man”) that’s a lot more subdued, but there’s a lot more depth to it than that, and it’s definitely full of bangers.Continue reading “The Bastards – Palaye Royale”
Piano – EP – Yvette Young
A lot of people get mad when you call an EP made in 2019 classical, so it’s nice to be able to call an album of piano and violin something: piano math rock. I’m not going to get into any of the changing time signatures, as the constant rhythmic innovations of these beautiful compositions areContinue reading “Piano – EP – Yvette Young”
Twenty One Pilots – Twenty One Pilots
It was really tough to pick a TOP album to review, because I’m super into Vessel, especially the Kierkegaardian lyrics of “Car Radio” and the Mixolydian mode mixture of “Migraine”, and blurryface, especially the dissonant beat and fast rap of “Heavydirtysoul” and the fun-to-play classic rock ditty, “Tear in My Heart”. I just love theContinue reading “Twenty One Pilots – Twenty One Pilots”
Replay – The Outfield
I love this album. Just listen to the first little bit of “Aladdin’s Cave” and you’ll be hooked in for more. (The time changes on that song are also cool.) The Outfield’s absolutely insane lead vocal harmonies are just as alluring as they were when this band recorded “Your Love”, and the harmonizing background vocalsContinue reading “Replay – The Outfield”
Bound to Be Something Good – The Crystal Casino Band
Bound to Be Something Good is a really solid album, a set of surf-rock-inspired (definitely not surf rock) pop tracks with sweet-sounding high-pitched guitars and high-hats; standouts “Luck” and “Bound to Be Something Good” both use a cyclical chord progression, superb continuing rhythms, and memorable riffing to create a upbeat soundtrack for relaxation. On theContinue reading “Bound to Be Something Good – The Crystal Casino Band”
Dopesmoker – Sleep
This one’s absolutely insane, and it’s not for everyone. This 2003 album is one hour-long slow heavy metal song; “Holy Mountain” is included on the latest release (which I’ve heard is the best release) but it’s not really part of it. I honestly thought people were using hyperbole when talking about doom metal, but, yeah,Continue reading “Dopesmoker – Sleep”
All We Know Is Falling – Paramore
“All We Know” is my favorite song Paramore have ever put out for its incredible guitar grooves, Hayley Williams’ wonderful wails, and for focusing so heavily on the iv chord that it feels like a temporary resolution, creating a memorable and interesting harmonic effect. The guitar on this album is awesome, not just due toContinue reading “All We Know Is Falling – Paramore”
Nonagon Infinity – King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard
“Robot Stop” is actually the first song I ever recorded! I had arranged an acoustic cover of it that used a ska-punk rhythm to keep the pulse-pounding energy of the original version, a D-E-F-G (all major) chord progression to fit the insanity of the chorus, and put most of it in 4/4 so I couldContinue reading “Nonagon Infinity – King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard”
Catbamboo – Catbamboo
Until this band puts out an album, I am forced to recommend this here; I’d actually say you should get into this band with their recent singles, “Swindle” and “Crave”, which boast awesome bright riffing and fantastically complex rhythmic work. Still, this is a great (generally instrumental) EP, with guitar that reminds me of TTNGContinue reading “Catbamboo – Catbamboo”
Discovery – Daft Punk
Full disclosure: at the time I’m writing this, I’ve been listening to “Aerodynamic” (or one of its excellent remixes) multiple times per day for the last couple weeks. The main riff with that swung sixteenth-note is the exact reason we have syncopation, the i-vidim-iv-VII progression is really really cool, and the harmonic breakdown riff isContinue reading “Discovery – Daft Punk”
Let the Vultures In + Martyr Parade – Des Rocs
I’m reviewing these two EPs together because I don’t know which one to review, they’re clearly meant to go together, and they could easily be a single album. “Let Me Live / Let Me Die” and “Used to the Darkness” showcase the two extremes of this album, a bombastic sometimes-swing track that feels like aContinue reading “Let the Vultures In + Martyr Parade – Des Rocs”
From the Fires – Greta Van Fleet
What a lovely album! You’ve gotta love the way those slow, purposeful riffs get under your skin in “Edge of Darkness”, and the switch to Mixolydian is a nice touch. Though the music certainly isn’t as complex as their predecessors Led Zeppelin, Greta Van Fleet has a unique knack for developing riffs beautifully and creatingContinue reading “From the Fires – Greta Van Fleet”
Chinese Democracy – Guns N’ Roses
I love this album. Unfortunately, its reputation has been poisoned by fans expecting another Appetite for Destruction to bring glam rock back; that said, the music really is quite out there. Honestly, I can usually tell what kind of a place I’m in by what kind of music I’m listening to, and if I’m listeningContinue reading “Chinese Democracy – Guns N’ Roses”
And Grace Will Lead Me Home – Mark Kroos
If you liked Disasterpeace’s Rise of the Obsidian Interstellar, you should check out these instrumental bluegrass-influenced clean guitar tracks. I first discovered Mark Kroos’ work in video form; he plays two guitar necks at once using tapping, and it’s really cool to watch. (Check out his playthrough of “Smoke & Mirrors” here.) His musical compositionsContinue reading “And Grace Will Lead Me Home – Mark Kroos”
Moonflower – MixAndMash
You probably only know one song on this album, their extremely good cover of Jack Stauber’s “Buttercup”. Well, guess what, the whole thing’s amazing, from the moment the cymbal comes in on “Dead Weight” to the isolated royal harlequin vibes of “Cascade”. (I don’t know which songs on this album are covers.) Along with “Cascade”,Continue reading “Moonflower – MixAndMash”
Introduction
Hi! I have a lot of albums I love, and I’ve been writing reviews of them in my free time, just as something to do for fun. I figured I would post them on the internet so that people who are into music can learn about them and check them out. This blog will updateContinue reading “Introduction”
Follow My Blog
Get new content delivered directly to your inbox.
Jack's Album Recommendations 