Feel free to recommend albums, and click here for the playlist.

May 27th: The Big Roar by The Joy Formidable

The first time I heard "Whirring" by the Joy Formidable, I knew I needed to know more about this band. This Welsh alt-rock trio's debut album (holy shit I'm starting to sound like Fantano) is full of beautifully noisy rockers with explosive hooks, and I love it. On songs like "The Everchanging Spectrum of a Lie" and the aforementioned "Whirring," they love to relish in the noise, letting the instrumentals build and build and just keep jamming. I also love Rhydian Dafydd's voice, which contrasts very well with these noisy songs. I love "Buoy," and "Whirring," and "The Heavy Abacus," with that last one being the one I added to the playlist because I had already heard "Whirring" before.

May 28th: Pop 2 by Charli XCX

I'm not sure if we're still calling hyperpop the wave of the future, but it makes perfect sense why everyone was saying that for a minute there. These songs have an infectious production style, which includes bright synths and weighty distorted bass, and DAMN do these songs have hooks. "Backseat" and "Out of my Head" and "Tears" are fun and bubbly pop songs that I'm sure will all be stuck in my head for weeks. Also, neither here nor there, but when I first heard "Femmebot," I found myself asking (as I do on the internet a lot) "Is this satirical, or a fetish thing?" My favorite song was "Unlock It."

May 29th: Deltron 3030 by Deltron 3030

After knowing Del tha Funkee Homosapien almost exclusively from his legendary collaborations with Gorillaz, I dove into his album with fellow Gorillaz collaborator Dan the Automator. The beats on this album weave samples together in an amazing fashion, and Del is always charismatic and a force to be reckoned with on every song. There's also interesting collaborations from Damon Albarn, Prince Paul, and Sean Lennon of all people (who, unfortunately, has become a real asshole.) It was hard to choose a favorite, but I put "3030" on the playlist.

May 30th: Plastic Ono Band by John Lennon

Continuing my post-Beatle explorations, we have John's solo debut (not counting his collaborations with Yoko). This is a good album, but it's also the most stereotypically John Lennon thing to exist. It's got some of his favorite subjects: Parental issues ("Mother," "My Mummy's Dead"), revolution ("Working Class Hero") and how he doesn't believe in God ("God," "I Found Out"). Also, this might just be me, but I think the production is a little dry. I put "Isolation" on the playlist because I already knew "Working Class Hero." It's likely that further Lennon albums are more to my liking.

May 31st: Ringo by Ringo Starr

In the words of Tom Breihan, "As a singer, Ringo is a great drummer." Ringo is a really good drummer who was an integral part of the Beatles' sound, and an incredibly likeable person, but I don't think it's a hot take to believe that Ringo isn't exactly cut out for carrying a full album as a lead singer. Listen to something like "Photograph," and it's the kind of thing that gets better the less attention you pay it. The album's worst moments are when it dives headfirst into 70's glam-cheese, such as "Sunshine Life for Me." My favorite is "Early 1970" because it's just self-aware enough about the Ringo of it all to be charming.

June 1st: Band on the Run by Paul McCartney and Wings

Now THIS is what I'm talking about. Paul is tied with George for my favorite of the Fab Four, and this album proves that he was capable of rocking the fuck out with a completely different group. "Band on the Run" is a lighthearted epic that I find really fun, "Jet" kicks all the ass, "Nineteen Hundred and Eighty-Five" rules, "Let Me Roll It" is a cool slow jam, and I love the way the songs all reference each other, really tying the album together. My favorite was "Jet."

June 2nd: The Blueprint by Jay Z

Shawn "Jay Z" "Hova" "Jigga" Carter's "The Blueprint" is a generally a pretty good album, with fun beats like on "Izzo" and "Heart of the City," and Jay generally being a powerful presence on the mic. Of course, this album isn't without some mildly annoying quirks of Hova's that I find a little annoying, like his weird raspy "Yeah yeah"s, and him gleefully singing about cheating on women, although that second part is mostly a retrospective issue, as he firmly got his ass kicked both physically and musically for that (that entire saga will be on this list eventually). All of that can be forgiven once I get to "Renegade," in which Jay and Eminem trade verses and they're both going absolutely crazy. It's my favorite on the album.

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