Τετάρτη, 1 Μαΐου 2024, 03:28:00

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7 Classic Rock Turkeys του μουσικού κριτικού Aidin Vaziri

Original Soundtracks 1 cover7 Classic Rock Turkeys
Aidin Vaziri

No one is perfect. Even some of our most dependable rock heroes blunder once in a while. In honor of Turkey Day (and the bad reviews being dished out for Chinese Democracy), we decided to dig through the archives and highlight the albums that their creators would probably rather forget.

Neil Young

Trans (1982)

When this album was released, many longtime fans were convinced it was Young’s satirical stab at new wave. But the singer-songwriter had actually embraced new sounds, particularly the synthesizers and a vocoder that he slathered all over emotionally detached songs like “Computer Cowboy” and “We R In Control.”

Save This Track: “Like An Inca”

U2

Original Soundtracks #1 by The Passengers (1995)

Releasing this tuneless, experimental Brian Eno-produced project under an assumed name was probably a good idea for one of the world’s biggest rock bands, even if the label insisted on it. Billed as a collection of songs meant for an imaginary movie, perhaps drummer Larry Mullen, Jr. put it best: “There’s a thin line between interesting music and self-indulgence. We crossed it on the Passengers record.”

Save This Track: “Miss Sarajevo”



The Clash

Cut The Crap (1985)

After Topper Headon and Mick Jones had departed, what remained of the Clash failed to follow the very simple instructions outlined in its own title. The album was such a parody of everything the band had accomplished before, even Clash historians have willingly tried to erase it from history.

Save This Track: “This Is England”



Bob Dylan

Self Portrait (1970)

 

“What is this shit?” That’s what Greil Marcus wanted to know in the opening line of his Rolling Stone review of Bob Dylan’s 10th studio album. A haphazard set of cover songs, instrumentals and live tracks sung in an affected Nashville accent, the songwriter later claimed he simply put it out to get people off his back. “There’d be crowds outside my house,” he said. And I said, ‘Well, f*** it. I wish these people would just forget about me. I wanna do something they can’t possibly like, they can’t relate to.’”

Save This Track: “Copper Kettle”



Aerosmith

Rock In A Hard Place (1982)

 

What’s an Aerosmith album without Joe Perry? Not very good. Weighed down by too many ballads and a group that sounded temporarily stuck in a holding pattern, this was tellingly Aerosmith’s last outing with Columbia until 1997.

Save This Track: “Lightning Strikes”



Led Zeppelin

In Through The Out Door (1979)


With just seven rambling songs, it seems like the band was short on inspiration when it came time to make its eighth studio album at ABBA’s studio in Sweden. That notion is confirmed by Robert Plant’s unusually clichéd lyrics and the lack of fireworks from Jimmy Page, understandable since the guitarist was battling heroin addiction at the time. The band broke up a year later.

Save This Track: “In The Evening”



Radiohead

Pablo Honey (1993)


Despite becoming one of the most innovative bands of the decade, Radiohead got off to a rough start with their first album. The Nirvana-aping single “Creep” did well on the radio but the rest of the album was hardly a portent of things to come. Highly derivative and unfocused, it regularly inhabits record store bargain bins.

Save This Track: “Stop Whispering”