Six Albums To Get Reacquainted With This Week
Classic soundtracks that will always hold up.
Written by Jake Levyns
In a year practically defined by bottomless excesses, it helps to have a gateway to a not so distant past in our pockets. The memories we create with our favorite albums allow us an escape to the carefree and cherished times of our lives like nothing else can. They introduce us to a time before our own where things really weren’t so different, and remind us of what music does to unify us. Lists like these could go on infinitely without sacrificing any essential additions to your libraries; these cherry-picked few, hopefully, will unlock that door of remembering for some of music’s signature era’s.
Alanis Morrisette - Jagged Little Pill
After twenty-five years, rock goddess Alanis Morrisette’s iconic third record Jagged Little Pill remains one of the most successful albums of all time and a defining moment for a new generation of women in music. Listening to it today, you may find there to be an air of familiarity around the melodic scorings of “Right Through You” and “Ironic,” as well as a timeless lyricist of coming-of-age angst in chart-toppers like “Mary Jane.” As a whole, it speaks directly to the young generations of today who find themselves in their own kind of limbo, because after all, relatability needs no further context.
Lauryn Hill - The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill
The one and only solo album from rapper Lauryn Hill is a pinnacle of late 20th-century R&B. Upon release in 1998, it practically became the bar for which records that came after it should reach. The heart of Miseducation is a love story in its most ethereal forms, as seen in hits like “Ex-Factor” and “Nothing Even Matters,” and an instinctual picture of measuring self-love and -worth with the likes of “Superstar.” Twenty-two years on, it still delivers classic hip hop in spades and finds its impact standing strong as ever in the H.E.R’s of 21st-century trailblazers.
Maroon 5 - Songs About Jane
Alternative pop outfit Maroon 5 released their 2002 debut album to widespread critical acclaim. To date, it’s sold over 10 million copies and solidified itself as a classic of the genre over eighteen years later. Lead singles like “Sunday Morning,” much like deep cuts in “Shiver” and “Not Coming Home,” haven’t aged a moment since release and still beckon to be heard all the way through no matter where their playing. It just goes to show that bands who have ultimately faltered under the pressure of commercial success almost always have a body of work where people can find their truest potential.
Joni Mitchell - Blue
Regarded as one of the greatest albums of all time, singer-songwriter Joni Mitchell’s 4th record has become a major influence on artists at work today, and its impact can be heard in every song. 1971 was a pivotal moment for music, seeing the release of several of the most significant albums of the 20th century, Blue was surely up there with the best of them. Mitchell writes and sings of heartbreak and resilience on songs like “All I Want” and “River,” while also giving voice to the most tremendous of losses in “Little Green.” To see the success of an almost fifty-year-old album prosper even more among the next generation of aspiring songwriters only points to the promise of what they can offer with such a legacy to guide them.
Florence + The Machine - Lungs
While “Dog Days Are Over,” the lead single off indie rock band Florence + The Machine’s 2009 debut record, all but catapulted them to international stardom, the body of work in its entirety didn’t garner the same passionate attention, unfortunately. As, I would argue, one of the most underrated bands in music today, they, in fact, prove on Lungs that they are the opposite of a one-hit-wonder. Frontwoman Florence Welch is a powerful vocal presence on cuts like “Howl” and “Drumming Song,” as well as an intricate lyricist on “My Boy Builds Coffins,” all among the ten other songs here in which the group dramatically makes themselves known to their legion of devoted fans.
The Cranberries - No Need to Argue
As a more unlikely selection for this list, yet still a worthy nod to the former Irish rock band, The Cranberries’ sophomore studio album released in 1994. Having sold 17 million copies to date, it very much holds as the success story of a band who was ultimately branded by tragedy after the loss of their lead vocalist, the late Dolores O’Riordan, in 2018. The passion of each of the five band members is heard on every song here, most notably opener “Ode to My Family,” arguably their biggest single “Zombie,” and guitar ballad “Everything I Said.” If sometimes nostalgia makes you rethink the past, the doors of No Need to Argue are wide open and ready to invite you in.
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