Day 0533 - Run D.M.C

Run D.M.C "Run D.M.C" (1984)

One of the great early rap albums.  Sparse arrangements over drum machine beats.  Occasional bursts of guitar and Jam Master Jay's scratches serve to anticipate their eventual 'rap rock' hit "Walk this Way".  The sounds act as a simple but effective backdrop for Run and DMC's rhymes.

They engage in some fun wordplay while delivering a healthy dose of social commentary.  The way they collaborate, play off each other and finish each other's sentences adds a bit of variety that you wouldn't necessarily get from a solo artist.

Day 0521 - A Walk Across the Rooftops

The Blue Nile "A Walk Across the Rooftops" (1983)

According to the book, being a fan of Blue Nile requires only patience.  The albums are all pretty similar but it takes them at least 5 years between releases.  Apparently even in being offered a recording deal it took them several months to come back with an answer for their record company.

There was a persistent story that the band had been commissioned to make an album by a company wanting to show off their hi-fi equipment and that the recording so impressed the company that they formed a record label to release the album.  Apparently though that is not true and the company had already released one or two things already; but it makes for a nice story.

The sound of this album is reminiscent of a few other artists of this era, in that these are essentially soulful pop songs but just steeped in instrumentation and production techniques of the 80s that maybe make them cleaner and colder than they want to be.  I liked it well enough.