Musicwhore.org Music and memory

Infomatik, Technologies

This album is one of those extremely rare, regional finds that will either be selling for $0.50 at a thrift store or $30 on Discogs.

Kanye West, 808s & Heartbreak

When this album was first released, my record store co-workers liked it enough to recommend it. Kanye had already gone headlong into celebrity insufferability by then, and I passed. It was that endorsement that prompted me to pick this album up at the thrift store. What I like best is the lack of raps, and thus, the lack of posturing. It’s also restrained, something refreshingly unbecoming of an artist with the size of Kanye’s ego.

The Bad Rackets, Full On Blown Apart

This album is the intersection of garage rock and punk that my Waterloo Records co-workers would play to death. It’s been about 15 years since, so I’m not so severe in my reaction to this kind of music. I’ve also met the band’s drummer, and he’s hotter than a straight guy has any business being.

Art of Noise, Re-works of Art of Noise

At the time of its release, I wasn’t interested in live tracks, which is half of this compilation EP. I was wrong to be so dismissive. Art of Noise had to adapt to a live setting, giving these tracks new facets the studio versions don’t capture. “Hammersmith to Tokyo and Back” is worth the price of the EP alone.

R.E.M., Monster

I skipped this album when it was released. All the pre-release press described Monster in terms that didn’t hold much appeal to me. I didn’t share everyone’s breathless acclaim for Automatic for the People, so I approached Monster with a level of skepticism that stopped me from listening to the album for 25 years. How foolish.

The Cult, Sonic Temple

I read about this album in a lot of magazines back in high school, but I never made the plunge. I like how it’s not quite heavy metal.

Tags: infomatik, kanye west, picks, purchase log, r.e.m., the art of noise, the bad rackets, the cult