Jamwise #36 · Years · 1990
Best Albums of 1990
The best albums of 1990, the first stop in my dive through the decade — Madonna, Depeche Mode, Public Enemy, Sonic Youth, Cocteau Twins, Sinead O'Connor, and more.
This week’s issue is dedicated to the year 1990. The RS list has a whopping 8 albums from 1990 - buckle up!
The Immaculate Collection — Madonna
This compilation is from Madonna’s 80’s singles, so it might not really fit in this 1990 list. But whatever, I grew up with a weirdly high awareness of Madonna, and so she stays in the 1990 retrospective.
Violator — Depeche Mode
Another theme of the 90’s is that, well, the 80’s were over. Nobody told Depeche Mode, though - they were just gaining strength as 1990 rolled around, and this album was considered their songwriting peak.
Fear Of A Black Planet — Public Enemy
Nonstop energy rolling and rolling and rolling. The commentary is still relevant in 2024 - a sad fact, to be honest - and the delivery, which is almost matter of fact even when covering Hollywood racism or misguided white outrage, is brilliant and somehow uplifting.
Amerikkka’s Most Wanted — Ice Cube
Same musical energy as Public Enemy, but with much more focus on self promoting of crime credentials than social commentary. It’s like a middle school playground version of the Public Enemy album, all “me me me” with no focus on the outside world.
Heaven Or Las Vegas — Cocteau Twins
There hasn’t been a more thorough dismantling of English phonetics since Buddy Holly or Sting. But where Buddy Holly’s mangling of words feels performative and Sting’s feels like the rumblings of an oncoming mental disorder, the Cocteau Twins make their mumbling sound completely endearing.
Mama Said Knock You Out — LL Cool J
It’s cool to compare 3 major hip hop albums from the same year. LL Cool J’s sound is a little more dated to me - more focused on enunciation and funk sounds than a more rough-edged voice and max-energy mixes like Ice Cube and Public Enemy.
Goo — Sonic Youth
Abstract experimentalism morphed into structured tune-based songs by this album. Song for Karen has such a cool structure - instead of breaks we get accelerating beats and driving energy.
I Do Not Want What I Haven’t Got — Sinéad O’Connor
The award for the most retro-looking album cover goes to I Do Not Want What I Haven’t Got. An instagram filter for someone trying to photographically revive the 80’s. Heck, this style is probably trending again in 2024.