Josef K

If I can offer a brief rebuttal to Pet_Sounds:
Eh. All three are sort of different beasts. I think you can easily enjoy Radio City without having heard #1 Record first (although I probably wouldn't listen to Third without having heard the first two).
I disagree - like I said, Radio City rocks harder, plus it's more consistent as an album. It's a little weirder, I guess, but it has their two best straightforward pop-rock songs, "Back of a Car" and "September Gurls", on it.
He's already said he's only listening to one. Therefore priority should be which one he'll most immediately like, and that's Radio City.

(Also, #1 Record has "The India Song", so yeah that's the one bad Big Star song.)

Trollheart

Title: The Cars
Artiste: The Cars
Year: 1978
Chronological position: Debut album
Previous experience of this artiste?: Heartbeat City, Door to door, Move like this plus the Greatest Hits compilation
Why is this considered a classic? Their greatest hits were on it, it introduced the world to the band and a new sound, and it sold over a million copies within a year.

My thoughts
One minute (or thereabouts in) ---- Good, great, bad, meh, still waiting or other? Great
One track in --- Great
Halfway through --- Great
Finished --- Great

Comments: Well even though Unknown Soldier wants to disown me and tar and feather me for not having heard this album, I have heard most of it through the compilations and singles, so tracks like “My best friend's girlfriend”, “Just what I needed” and Good times roll” are all well known and liked by me. Love the Queen-like chorus on the opener, possibly thanks to their producer having come from working with that band earlier. Funnily enough, they're described as a new-wave band; I would never have thought that. To me they were just an AOR or rock act. I guess the amount of synthesisers and effects contributed to that tag. Still, I wouldn't have put them in the same arena as Cabaret Voltaire, Flock of Seagulls or any of that lot.

I do however agree with the sleeve being very annoying; that woman couldn't close her stupid mouth? She looks like a cartoon, or as if she's totally high. Meh. I find the quality suddenly dipping though when “I'm in touch with your world” hits; it's just such a comedown after three powerful tracks. Maybe it was too much to expect that everything would be of the same calibre, but still, a bit disappointing that it dips so early. Perhaps it's just a blip. Well, “Dont'cha stop” sounds a bit like Martha and the Muffins' “Echo beach”, but it's a hell of a better song than the previous as it gets the tempo kicking again. As does “You're all I've got tonight”, really rocks along and again you can hear the Queen influence there but not so much that it seems like the Cars are ripping Freddie and Co. off.

“Bye bye love” is okay but I feel it's again lacking something, but “Moving in stereo” gets us back on track; kind of a dark, grindy feel to it with some cool effects. Probably the closest I would say they come to what I would think of as new wave. Closer then is another good rocker, kind of mid-paced and “All mixed up” takes us to the finish line. Interesting, and perhaps a brave decision, not to have a single ballad on the album. I know they made hits out of ballads later, so the fact that this album sold so well without one is quite impressive.

Favourite track(s): Good times roll, My best friend's girlfriend, Just what I needed, You're all I've got tonight, Moving in stereo, All mixed up
Least favourite track(s): I'm in touch with your world

Final impression --- I think the Cars were very lucky in that they had two ready-made, but entirely different, singers in Ben Orr and Ric Ocasek, Now there's only one of course, but back then you could get a great mix from the two of them swapping vocal duties. A great debut and it certainly pointed the way towards the bright lights that would eventually lead The Cars to their destination, Heartbeat City.

[i]Do I feel, at the end, A) I wish I had listened to this sooner
B) I'm sorry I bothered
C) I might end up liking this
D) Have to wait and see
E) Bit underwhelmed; was ok but a classic?
F) Definitely enjoyed it, but again would I consider it a classic?
G) Enjoyed this album just purely on its own merits
H) Glad I listened to it

That's a H I think and I rate it

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Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

Unknown Soldier

As you quite like it I won't now.

Obviously not enough as it was 'girl' and not 'girlfriend'.

Well its the perfect example of an American new wave record at that time along with the likes of Blondie, the Knack, Television and Devo. Some of those bands leaned more towards punk and other more to electronic music and the Cars I'd say were smack bang in the middle of those two styles. Now a Flock of Seagulls I'd put as a 'second wave new-wave' band as they came along later. But I can see the AOR appeal as it fits into with what an AOR fan would like to hear on an album.

The album cover is iconic Cars and the type of album cover that they wanted, it displays the playful fun of the band for this album, even though they were always a band of darker undertones.

That's the weakest track on the album.

Btw I think the b-side of that album is stronger than the a-side.

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Metal Wars

Power Metal

Pounding Decibels- A Hard and Heavy History

Powerstars

Might I recommend Weezer's Blue Album and Pinkerton? I prefer Pinkerton, but others will tell you Blue is superior. If not, that's cool, I see you already have quite the queue.

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Frownland

I think instead of PIL's Metal Box you should listen to Flowers of Romance or First Issue. There's a possibility that you might like those two but (as much as I love the album) I don't see you taking any liking to Metal Box.

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Studies show that when a given norm is changed in the face of the unchanging, the remaining contradictions will parallel the truth.

James

I really want to see Trollheart say something nice about Post-Punk, but I'm convinced giving Metal Box or anything PIL really will just push him in the opposite direction.

Frownland

Pere Ubu - Dub Housing maybe?

There's a chance that TH will enjoy the new The Pop Group album Citizen Zombie as well.

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Studies show that when a given norm is changed in the face of the unchanging, the remaining contradictions will parallel the truth.

Trollheart

The problem here is that this is "classic albums", and no matter what, you can't call an album released this year a classic. Well you can, but it doesn't fit into the framework I have here. Pere Ubu, I don't know: is that a classic album? Are you guy trying to push me towards opening a new journal: "Trollheart does Post Punk"??

I may however take that CZ under the recs thread, when I have time. As Khan told Kirk in Star Trek II: "Time is a luxury you do not have!"

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Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

Urban Hat€monger ?

You keep saying this in almost every journal but you post about 70 entries a week. Give it a month or so and you'll be asking for more recs.

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Josef K

Dub Housing is a classic. So is Y by the Pop Group, but it's even harder to imagine you liking that.