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User
Reviews 8
Approval 100%
Soundoffs 19
Album Ratings 116
Objectivity 77%
Last Active 03-17-17 2:36 pm
Joined 03-17-17
Review Comments 23
| The Best Records You've Probably Never Heard
This list includes albums that are obscure, but that deserve worldwide recognition. I highly recommend every album on the list. Let me know if you've heard any of them! | | 1 |  | TM Juke
Forward
It's an eclectic journey through jazzy electronica. Juke relies on talented no-names for vocals (Kinny, Alice Russell), and proves with his instrumental songs that, even without vocals, his music is worth listening to. | | 2 |  | Imani Coppola
Chupacabra
Though it spawned the Top 40 hit "Legend of a Cowgirl," Coppola's debut failed to enter the Billboard 200 albums chart. Nevertheless, it proved itself to be a breath of fresh air, abandoning 90s angst for songs about the 9-to-5 grind ("I'm a Tree," "Naked City"), alternate personalities ("It's All about Me, Me, and Me"), and a homeless man who receives an airplane ticket to Hawaii ("Karma and the Blizzard"). At turns happy, touching, and hilarious, "Chupacabra" is a perfect example of the record that should have changed pop music forever. | | 3 |  | Charlotte Sometimes
Waves And The Both Of Us
Charlotte Sometimes (who took her name from a children's book, not the Cure song) debuted in 2008 with this album, which rather sounds like Vanessa Carlton meets Marina & the Diamonds. She's occasionally lascivious (as on the title track), but elsewhere, she tells great stories - on "Ex-Girlfriend Syndrome, she explores her cheating boyfriend's home, while she navigates an abusive relationship on "Sweet Valium High." Not every song here is mind-blowing, but Sometimes' debut still sounds unusual and interesting. | | 4 |  | Toni Basil
Toni Basil
Here's why you probably haven't heard this album: it was never released on CD! If you have the good fortune to find it in a secondhand music store's music bin, get it. This sounds like if Madonna went New Wave (though it predates Madonna). With production from members of Devo and delightfully wacky song titles ("Space Walkin' the Dog" is the best), Basil's ill-fated second and final LP is worth the effort it'll take to track it down. (For those without a working turntable, most of the songs made it onto her 1992 "Mickey and Other Love Songs" greatest hits collection.) | | 5 |  | Nellie McKay
Get Away From Me
Nellie McKay's debut album is as hilarious as Weird Al and as eclectic as Prince. McKay ventures through jazz, rap, rock, and piano ballads on this LP, released as a double album to give the feeling of listening to a record. The best track? "Sari," where McKay raps her apologies for everything from her wardrobe to her rhymes. | | 6 |  | Skye Sweetnam
Noise From The Basement
Great for any teen-pop fan who hates Ashlee Simpson. Sweetnam's debut sound more self-aware than you'd expect, and though her worries are often trivial, she sounds like she's having the time of her life. | |
SandwichBubble
03.28.17 | Hey now, Ys is a classic with 600 ratings! Hardly obscure.
I've heard 2 and 4 before, but I guess they just slipped my mind. | Papa Universe
03.28.17 | Who the hell doesn't know Ys? | MonotoneMop
03.28.17 | Has anyone said that Joanna Newsom isn't obscure yet | Kompys2000
03.29.17 | 2 sounds interesting, I'll have to check it out sometime soon | theacademy
03.29.17 | i know all of these actualy | Anothertwo
03.29.17 | @ theacademy
Good for you! I would like to point out that none of these albums broke the Top 100 on the US album chart, and three of them didn't chart at all. Nonetheless, it's great that you've heard them. | CompostCompote
03.29.17 | Is Toni basil related to Steve basil, world famous baseball umpire? | Anothertwo
03.29.17 | @CompostCompote
I don't think Toni Basil is related to Steve, but I could be wrong. | theacademy
03.29.17 | i actually know all of these though (and i have heard them) | Satellite
03.29.17 | who is this obscure minstrel joanna newsom you speak of? tell me, o learned one, for my village is unfamiliar with her name. | Anothertwo
03.29.17 | @ Satellite
Good one! I'm willing to admit her record is less obscure than the others, but if you walk up to someone on the street, it's doubtful they'll have ever heard of Newsom. | NorthernSkylark
03.29.17 | That made me laugh hard | Anothertwo
03.30.17 | OK, just so everyone knows, I've removed Joanna Newsom's album from the list. It turns out that she's a lot better-known than I thought she was, which is great. | Keyblade
03.30.17 | ashlee simpson? this ain't 2004 bro | Anothertwo
03.30.17 | @Keyblade
Good point. I mentioned Ashlee Simpson because, in recent years, teen pop (at least the Ashlee Simpson/Avril Lavigne type) has fallen out of favor. What female teen-pop/rock singer would you suggest I replace her name with? | Dewinged
03.30.17 | Diamanda Galas | FullOfSounds
03.30.17 | cool, 1 got me interested |
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