Underrated albums that you absolutely love

Robin Booth said:June of 44 - Anahata😍

It’s not just good; it’s their absolute best.

Honestly, I'm right there with you, especially considering "Four Corners".

All of Dinosaur Jr. after Barlow left is criminally underrated...

I actually find "Solid Gold" much better than "Entertainment!".

I'm just not feeling the rest anymore...

Years ago, I would have traded "English Settlement" for Saxon in a heartbeat. 😎

English Settlement is an absolute masterpiece. :zaštonepostojinadurenismajli: 🙂

Kevin Chavez3 said:I traded my copy of "English Settlement" for a Saxon record ages ago. 😎

...and honestly, I scored a massive pile of Ya:raan points for it
😬

🙂 EARTH CRISIS - Firestorm EP 🙂
Meantime- go hide in a mouse hole or something!!!

DŽDŽ DŽDŽ DŽDŽ DŽDŽDŽDŽDŽDŽDŽDŽDŽ 🙂

(everything else is just garbage)

stormyviper11 said::protective-shield-standing-tall-smile:

I was wondering the same thing—as if we really needed that right now, I guess.

ruggedcrane22 said:"Such a Shame", "Dum Dum Girl", "Give It Up" and "Life's What You Make It" are among the best synth-pop singles ever. Now there's this record "Spirit of Eden" which even the most die-hard fans of this band hate, but personally, I think it's good.

I love Talk Talk. "Such a Shame" is probably the best synth-pop song ever made. Such a shame, write across my name.
After listening to "Spirit of Eden" (recently), I didn't even think twice before dropping some cash on it (at a sale, mind you). All that's left is to hunt down "Laughing Stock".

ruggedcrane22 said:another album considered weak (these days everyone thinks the whole band was garbage, though I don't agree) is "Synchronicity" by the Police. If you set aside the songwriting misses from Summers and Copeland (with "Mother" and "Miss Gradenko"), Sting was at the absolute peak of his creative (and sexual) power here.

I'll second that. "Mother" — ugh, gross! And I honestly can't bring myself to get sick of "Every Breath You Take" after twenty years. The Police are the gold standard. Even those guys in Šarlo akrobat were basically "borrowing" from the Police, right?

stormyviper11 said:Here are two of mine:
Bob Dylan-Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid - WTF?
Neil Young-Dead Man - one of the best soundtracks ever, gives me chills every single time I play it.

Signed. Along with "Blood on the Tracks," "Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid" is my favorite Dylan memory. It’s also tied to my grandmother's hometown. It's heartbreaking when I hear that tacky, white-trash metal cover of Knockin' on Heaven's Door.

By the way, "English Settlement" is a fantastic album. XTC always hits that "very good" mark—they rarely settle for just "good," and they almost never stop at being an "excellent" band. Total intellectuals.

idioteque said:shellac - terraform.
People trash it, but in my opinion, the album is great. Better than the overrated "1000 hurts."

Jap, an album that closes out with "Copper" has to be better than "1000 hurts," and it is.
........

je*ote, what a waste of effort. Douglas Taylor4, you are such a boring pain in the ass. I'm going to have to terminate you.

I picked up a copy of "English Settlement" ages ago back when I was just a kid. It was one of those domestic licensed vinyl pressings we used to get, but honestly, it never really clicked for me. Eventually, I just traded it in for an Adam and the Ants record.

stormyviper11 said:I honestly think English Settlement is such an incredible album. It really is! 🙂

Honestly, this one is in absolutely fantastic shape. I’d happily trade it for just about any punk record out there, provided it isn't Vibrators Quote. 😬

Douglas Taylor4 said:I’m totally with you on this one. "Mother"—man, what a track! And honestly, I don't think I could ever get tired of "Every Breath You Take," even after twenty years of hearing it. The Police are absolute legends. It makes me wonder, though—didn't Šarlo borrow a bit of that vibe from them? Maybe I'm just imagining things, but there's definitely a connection there!

Hmm, I didn't catch that with Šarlo, but I guess ruggedcrane22 definitely did... 😁

Nicholas Perez33 dustyridge12 said:XTC - English Settlement. It’s the truth. I’m swapping out my records—anyone interested? 😁

The Columbia Records release was significantly condensed compared to the original pressing—so, I honestly feel for anyone who decided to pick that version up.
They ought to be careful.

My brain isn't exactly firing on all cylinders this morning—I feel like I’m moving through molasses. But, if I can pull one coherent thought together, it’s that Green Day is criminally underrated. Now, I don't mean they're some obscure indie act nobody has heard of; I mean they deserve way more credit than they get. Specifically, when I look back at their albums *Nightlife* and *Easy Listening*, I honestly rank them among the absolute best releases since the turn of the millennium. It's not just my personal bias, either—if you look at the reviews from that era, there was this rare, unanimous wave of critical acclaim for those two records. The strange thing is, despite that peak, the band seems to just keep grinding away in relative obscurity. It’s frustrating because anyone who actually sits down and listens to those two albums tends to fall in love with that specific sound and songwriting style. They hail from Cleveland, Ohio, and most people actually stumbled upon them back when they were essentially playing as a side project for Guided by Voices—specifically during the *mag Earwhig* era involving Robert Pollard. If I had to pin down a genre, I’d call them "neo-glam," though even that feels a bit like a stretch. There’s definitely glam influence, plenty of punk grit, and—to borrow a phrase from HowdyRabbit—that classic, raw rock 'n' roll spirit. But the way they handle their guitars and vocals is truly singular. Their influence is real, too; you’ve had legends like j Mascis and Mike Watt covering their songs at live shows, and even Wayne Kramer gave them a massive boost by releasing *Easy Listening*. And here’s a fun little bit of trivia for the fans: the singer, John Petkovic, is actually a huge fan of our culture and can speak our language quite fluently—especially after a few drinks.

Please check this over. If you haven't spent much time digging through the archives at http://www.greenday.com/, you're honestly missing out on some incredible deep dives—it’s one of those corners of the internet that feels like finding a dusty, well-loved vinyl crate in a basement in Seattle. I was browsing through it earlier this afternoon, just killing time between meetings, and it really struck me how much heart goes into their digital presence. It isn't just flashy marketing fluff; there's a genuine sense of history there. It reminded me of those old-school record store visits where you'd spend an hour just staring at the liner notes, trying to soak up every bit of context about the artists. Truly worth a look if you want to reconnect with the music.There’s actually even a music video for their hit "Riot industry"—it features George W. Bush, Mike Watt, and a whole group of backup dancers.

dustyridge12 said:The Columbia Records release is actually quite a bit shorter than the original, so I guess those who decide to
should probably be a little cautious.

Does anyone happen to know what the original version sounds like? 😬

dustyridge12 said:My brain isn't quite firing on all cylinders this morning... The only thing I can recall that feels underrated—without being a total obscurity—is the work of that American band Green Day.

And what about "see how we are (X)"?

Kid A - Radiohead

Because it’s sitting right there next to The Bends and OKC, that idiot over at The New York Times trashed the album—honestly, he probably didn't even listen to it and just lazily ripped off some other review...

Air-10000 Hz

The early QOTSA albums? They aren't even mentioned on these lists, yet they blow this latest release out of the water.

Alice in Chains - Jar of Flies.
Fear Factory - Archetype.
Deftones - Adrenaline
Critics absolutely trashed Helmet - Aftertaste. Personally? I think it’s their most "pop" work, and honestly, it’s exactly what I want to hear.
Someone already mentioned Ministry - Filthpig.
Soundgarden - Badmotorfinger
Then there’s Chris Cornell - Euphoria Morning.
The soundtrack for *The Virgin Suicides* by Air is pure atmosphere. It’s moody, ethereal, and perfectly captures that specific kind of suburban melancholy. Just sitting there, letting the textures wash over you. It hits different when you're just staring out a window on a rainy afternoon in Seattle. Truly timeless stuff. 😍
The Jesus Lizard - Shot... honestly, it’s like some people just don't get it. They simply don't have any bad albums.
JSBX - ACME
...can't quite recall it right now.

Narantxa said:Which one was the original version? 😬

Is it see How WE ara (X)?

Actually, thanks for pointing that out—good catch. That specific album came about right after Billy Zoe left the band, and honestly, it’s one of those records that many people don't gravitate toward as much as the first four. Personally, though, I absolutely love it. Instead of just one guitarist stepping in to fill the void left by Zoe, they actually had two—Tony Gilkyson (hope I got the spelling right?) working alongside the legendary David Alvin from The Blasters. Alvin even lent a hand with the songwriting on "Fourth of July," and the whole record has this incredibly fierce, loud, and explosive momentum that you just don't find very often. It feels like X really carved out their own niche here; I’d call it a sort of "trucker punk"—you can definitely hear the group's punk roots, yet there's this subtle undertone that reminds me of Bob Seger (which isn't usually my cup of tea!), but somehow it all sounds remarkably smooth and powerful under X's direction. To top it off, the album closes with a cover of The Flesheaters' "Cyrano de Bergerac," which was actually penned by John Doe during his time with The Flesheaters—a total classic!

As for why I might prefer see How WE ara... well, maybe it's just because for a long time, that was the only X album I actually owned.

stormywolf39 said:Deftones - Adrenaline

Who actually says Adrenaline is a weak album? I’d love to hear them state that to my face. 🙂 Honestly? That's their best album. Period. 🙏 🙏 Man, I seriously pulled a few muscles at the gym yesterday—total rookie mistake. 🙂 Man, whenever I think back to being sixteen and hearing "7 Words" for the first time on my Walkman—it was such a wild, frantic hunt just trying to track down anything by Deftones everywhere I could. 😁

stormywolf39 said:JSBX - ACME

I wasn't really feeling it before—honestly, it wasn't my thing—but lately? It’s grown on me big time. 😍

Van Morrison - Inarticulate Speech of the Heart

Pips, Chips & Videoclips - Drvece i Rijeke (honestly, I’d go as far as to say it’s the most American album ever made... and the worst part is how the critics just trashed it and looked the other way... I don't know a single soul who actually likes this record... but to me, it’s practically a masterpiece)
White Stripes - De Stijl (flawless)
Damned - Black Album (surprisingly good, diverse, and mature...)
Beatles - Help (it's usually dismissed as their weakest effort. Personally, I think it blows all their early stuff out of the water, especially Hard Day's Night. It’s even more consistent than Rubber Soul if you ask me)
Air - Virgin Suicides Soundtrack
Pogues - Peace & Love (absolutely beautiful... Misty Morning, Albert Bridge... man)
Clash - Sandanista (count me in for the fan club... it's wild, gutsy, over the top, and totally misunderstood)

stormywolf39 said:Soundgarden - Badmotorfinger

Man, come on now. If you’re a Soundgarden fan, you’re probably into them specifically because of this record, so I don't think it really fits into that category at all.

Robin Booth said:Man, honestly? People who love Soundgarden love them specifically for this record. It doesn't fit that category at all.

Fair enough, but let's be real—critics were always going to hail Superunknown as the more "mature" and "cohesive" masterpiece, blah blah blah.

When you guys start picking on me...

That first one from Maiden without the bra. X-something. Absolutely legendary!

American Idol is absolutely killer...