Awesome underrated albums that are worth your time
To me, a good album is an album that you can listen to all the way through with few to no skips. I think it’s often that we listen to just the most popular songs in an album rather than the album as a whole, which makes sense sometimes because there might just be a single that is good, and the rest of the songs don’t feel the same. But it doesn’t hurt to give the album as a whole a listen through at least once: doing so is one of the best ways to find hidden gems. I have three albums to share that I would consider underrated, and I believe are worth your time to take a full listen through.
She Hangs Brightly – Mazzy Star
She Hangs Brightly is the debut album from the alternative rock band Mazzy Star, released in 1990. You may know the album from one of their most popular songs, “Blue Flower” and “Hallah”. “Blue Flower” reached 29 on the Billboard for alternative songs. Although these songs gained popularity, the entire album did not. Their music expresses multiple emotions with an overall calming feel. It’s a dreamy psychedelic rock album with a mix of dark and uplifting feels. Kurt Cobain, the lead singer of Nirvana, put She Hangs Brightly on his personal list of top 50 favorite albums of all time, according to Wikipedia.
Mazzy Star is my all-time favorite band. It wasn’t until last year that I listened to She Hangs Brightly all the way through. If not the iconic song “Blue Flower,” my favorite song from the album would have to be a song with a very similar feel called “Give You My Lovin.’” I love how upbeat the song is. I listened to those two songs on repeat last summer, and I would again.
Alice in Chains – Alice in Chains
Alice in Chains (informally known as Tripod) is Alice in Chains’ last album to feature their lead singer, Layne Staley, who died from drug addiction in 2002. The tracklist is emotional and heavy and is said to be their darkest album. This album did not gain much attention because it was released during the decline of the grunge era in 1995 and because it was released after one of their most popular albums, Dirt, which had a much larger audience in contrast.
It wasn’t until recently that I started really listening to Alice in Chains outside of their most popular songs like “Nutshell” and “Man in a Box,” and I realized that I’ve been missing out big time. My favorite song from that album would have to be “Heaven Beside You,” mainly for the meaningful and relatable lyrics. I like how raw and meaningful the album is in general. Yes, the album is dark, but it’s not sugar coating, which is what makes it really good.
Obscured By Clouds – Pink Floyd
Obscured by Clouds is Pink Floyd’s seventh studio album. It has been overshadowed by the band’s most popular albums, such as The Dark Side of the Moon and The Wall. The album was created for the French film La Vallée. The film itself did not garner much attention and is reportedly problematic. The film’s soundtrack has a dreamy, calming feel and is arguably one of the band’s most upbeat albums. Like many of Pink Floyd’s albums, it’s the kind of music that is nice to just listen to with headphones and just think. Usually, film soundtracks don’t gain much attention because they don’t make sense without the film, but I think this one deserves more listens because it’s more than a soundtrack.
I fell in love with the song “Wot’s… Uh the Deal” after listening to it in my grandpa’s car one summer evening. Soon after, I was introduced to the album as a whole, where I found many other great songs. Listening through, the soundtrack felt slightly different in contrast to their other albums, and it reminded me most of their album Wish You Were Here.
I recommended you give these albums a chance; it never hurts to try out new genres and artists. If you are unsure what album to start with, I recommend She Hangs Brightly first; it’s an easy listen. If not these albums, you should listen to other albums all the way through. To me, it’s how you find songs that aren’t overplayed and that you can connect with.
