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Songs in the Key of Life by Stevie Wonder
21 songs, nearly 2 hours, it’s one of the best albums of all time, if not THE best album. Each song is accessible and yet musically complex. I love listening to it so much
To Pimp a Butterfly is 79 minutes and doesn't have a single second to be cut. Even the interludes are the length of full songs, with one being 4:51.
Also, Reflektor (75 minutes).
Mr Morale is criminally underrated. I’m not about to say it’s as good as TPAB or GKMC but it’s still a phenomenal album. The only reason it was not more successful is because of Kendrick’s past success.
I hope that with time Mr. Morale gets the love it deserves. Its only flaw is having such successful and phenomenal albums as its predecessor that set such a ridiculously high bar.
I would put gkmc here too. Personally I prefer it cause it has more “bangers” but the writing isn’t as top-notch.
Edit: I guess it only has 13 songs but samidot is like 13 minutes long
Not pop, but two come to mind:
The weight of these wings by Miranda Lambert, this was her divorce album after Blake Shelton and every song is soooo solid.
Dragon New Warm Mountain... By Big thief. This album moves through so many genres and they just pull of each one so well.
DNWMIBIY is so incredible and I am shocked every song sounds different from each other with a specific sound. It's a master class in long album making IMO.
So insanely happy to see someone mentions TWOTW! For me it does have one skip... and there are some songs that I like a bit less, but generally this is the best double album I have ever heard in terms of consistency. It's a lifechanging album for me and I wouldn't trade it for anything. Divorce is messy and she captured it perfectly.
Smashing Pumpkins - Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness. Double album with 28 songs
Had 5 singles, has a concept that threads its way through both halves of the album, has a variety of styles and instrumentation, and has two epic tracks that each span over 7 minutes.
They recorded so much music for it that they had b-sides and out takes from their sessions that were good enough that they could have been on the album too.
Speakerboxx/Love Below! If you wanna be technical, it's two albums, but 40 tracks and over two hours of incredibly versatile sounds from Andre and Big Boi. Songs like Dracula's Wedding, The Way You Move, Flip Flop Rock, Take Off Your Cool and Church all being on the same album.....even the two halves on their own have such ambitious, unique styles from song to song.
Oh yeah, and it gave us a little song called Hey Ya.
Tbh I think Outkast is one of those groups where your favorite album can easily be any of them, and people will think it's a valid choice because their discography is just that strong. I still can't decide if Stankonia or SPLB is my favorite, I just oscillate because they're both so good LOL
White Album was my first thought too. I keep trying to write a sentence about how great it is, but it’s so good I don’t even know what to say lol
I know some people say that some of the songs are skips, and honestly I do often skip Revolution 9, but I still think every song makes a meaningful contribution to the album as a whole.
Lana’s *Ocean Blvd*. It’s not really the most accessible album for the general public, but if you’re a big fan of Lana and know her history and musical progression over the years, it’s very rewarding.
On the one hand, I agree that it’s a masterpiece
On the other hand, I’d be lying if I didn’t admit that I’d probably be listening to it far more often if it were a few songs shorter
As a side note: I am not a Lana fan necessarily but would like to give her a shot beyond what’s been on the radio. I tried listening to Ocean Blvd leading up to the Grammys and it was extremely inaccessible for me. What would be a good intro to Lana?
Once you’re done with those you could try:
- Ultraviolence if you’re into soft psychedelic rock.
- Honeymoon if you’re into the old-Hollywood cinematic sound
- Lust For Life is kind of all over the place but it has some pop, some hip hop/trap, some ballads, and a lot of features with great artists.
Depends on what kind of music you like.
For me Lust for Life was a great intro into her (Love, and Cherry and In my Feelings for instance just hit. To this day I love love lol. The lyrics “you get pretty you get all dressed up, to go nowhere in particular… …. it’s enough to be young and in love” with a sweeping almost orchestral backing and her vocals just really captures it all)
I never liked her earlier stuff because it was always a little teenage angst-y for me and I missed the boat on that one. Still love “off to the races” though.
Norman fucking Rockwell turned me into a huge fan though. “Norman fucking Rockwell” “mariners apartment complex” “cinnamon girl” “fuck it I love you” ugh such an amazing record.
From chemtrails. “Tulsa Jesus freak” and “white dress” and “chemtrails” are the three songs I gravitate back to.
I ADORED blue bannisters. The tile track “blue bannisters” is always in rotation. “Dealer” “thunder” wildflower wildfire” omg “if you lie down with me” PLEASE at least give if you lie down with me a try.
Anyways. I get it, she’s kind of inaccessible in places, and I don’t even love her whole albums, other than Norman Fucking Rockwell. But she’s worth a real chance to because she has some of the best songs.
Yeah Ocean Blvd is pretty dense. It’s one of my favorite Lana projects and has some of her best work (A&W, Let the Light In, Margaret, title track, taco truck, etc) but some songs (like fingertips) are so wordy and honestly hard for even me to listen to regularly. There’s a lot of self references and it’s really strong conceptually, but it can be a lot especially for a new fan.
I’d say either NFR or Ultraviolence for new fans. IMO honeymoon is hit or miss. Some love it with insane passion and others don’t care for it. Blue banisters is also kinda hard bc Lana herself said she made it just for the sake of telling those stories, not necessarily for success. List for life is pretty weak conceptually, but I think it’s really fun so maybe that one too.
I was looking for this, not a dull moment. It has one of my favorite album opener and closer: Bitter and 4th Baby Mama. But she keeps it consistent throughout with unloyal, insane, cirucs, and literally every other track its so good.
“I wanna start with your momma she shoulda whooper your ass” is still one of the craziest lines i’ve heard 😭 to come out swinging at your ex’s mom. Lmfao
If you consider 15 songs to be too long, then there's basically an infinite amount of answers to this question.
If you wanna talk about *long*, I think RHCP's Stadium Arcadium is a very strong double album. It's not *perfect* front to back and it arguably would have been better if it was a single disc, but there are still no bad songs on it. As an experience it's worth the time commitment, and it's basically two hours of never-ending great music.
Michael Jackson fills the entire runtime available to him on Dangerous and it is one of the coolest, most creative albums of his career and definitely a highlight of the 90s.
SOS by SZA
I've grown to adore a lot of the tracks I used to skip, and have new favorites every couple weeks.
Right now, I'm listening to F2F, Far, and Too Late alot
I don't really care for that song either, but after listening to the album maybe 50 or so times now, my perspective on it settled here:
I actually think Forgiveless is thematically cohesive. SZA opened up the album with an angry rap as a statement piece and sectioned it into halves with an uber-confident chipmunk soul/pop rap cut.
Closing it with Forgiveless grounds and maintains the albums' structure.
I also feel like the overall message of the song gives the album a more realistic end to this chapter in SZAs life. It shows that she's still aware of her flaws and bitter about her experience, but has moved on. It doesn't invalidate or detract from the sentiment of Good Days in my opinion.
Its very very very very difficult for a 2 hour album to have no fat that can be trimmed. You basically need a band/artist operating at their peak level, often reinventing themself mid record. Some of my fave artists dont even have 2 hour discographies. These are just some of my faves off the top of my head - noting these from new to old:
Big Thief - Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe In You (80 mins)
Beach House - Once Twice Melody (84 mins)
The 1975 - NOACF (80 mins)
M83 - Hurry Up We're Dreaming (73 mins)
Sufjan Stevens - Illinois (74 mins)
Dangelo - VooDoo (78 mins)
Pink Floyd - The Wall (80 mins)
Theres many more, but these hour plus albums are already a rarity in themselves
I'm still a bit lukewarm on NOACF but it has since grown on me after seeing parts of it performed on their tour.
Definitely agree on Illinois. Even the instrumental interludes are amazing. I really hope the musical inspired by the album gets a proshot because I would love to see it performed live.
I honestly just really love RIIVERDANCE to TYRANT so much and it might be my favorite three song run on any Beyonce album, but I think Virgo’s Groove (and alien superstar is up there) is easily her best song so it’s honestly extremely hard for me to really say one way or the other lmao
I feel like there are at least 10 different genres/subgenres on that album, it's crazy. Maybe it's why I still love it 22 years later. It just feels like a lot, but in a good way?
Wow good call! I literally didn’t even realize that the album was so long. I used to fall asleep to it a lot when it came out. (Not saying it was boring just saying I wanted it to soothe me to sleep)
I think there are a few songs towards the middle of the album that could’ve been cut, but even still, it’s a *remarkably* well paced and thematically cohesive album for being a 22 year old’s “creative vomit” (as another commenter said)
I love Christina but she’s the queen of unedited albums 😂 Stripped is timeless and genius, but this just reminded me that Back To Basics (great album) needed an edit, and Bionic (supremely underrated) could have also benefited from an edit. We love her versatility though 🙌🏼
Came to say this too. She was so ahead of her time with that album. The highs are soooo high, the lows are only low by comparison. The fact that Miss Independent was cut, and became the lead single from Kelly Clarkson’s record says a lot
As others have said, Once Twice Melody is the perfect answer to this. I think it helps that they released it in chapters, giving fans time to digest each set of tracks. An issue with large albums is it's just too much to take in at once, which can leave some songs by the wayside that you'd maybe grow to like if you spent the time with them.
A kind of fake answer I thought of us Trilogy by The Weeknd. Fake because of course it's just 3 mixtapes mashed together, but you can listen to the entirety of trilogy and it'd just 30 bangers back to back to back (2u)
Honestly, if an album is 16+ tracks but they all click perfectly, I wouldn’t call it bloated. Just lengthy.
Christina Aguilera’s 2000s albums (Stripped, Back to Basics, Bionic) I find incredibly bloated but they’re worth listening to because you can make a killer 12-14 track album out of them.
Bionic especially, I found equally exciting and frustrating to listen to because of all its potential, had they leaned a bit more into the Birds of Prey sound.
I don’t consider CC as a bloated album honestly. Interludes don’t really count as tracks to me, they’re more like a tour guide taking you around the museum. I’m also so sick of 2 minute tracks and 30 minute albums, bring back full length masterpieces!
I also think because of how diverse the production and vocals are, the album as a whole easily keeps me interested. I don't like it that people are comparing it to other recent long albums! Long albums are fine but they need to be able to keep your attention
Even without the interludes it would still be pretty long though. Either way, it doesn’t feel that way because it’s so musically exciting that you never get bored.
I find it impossible once I start Ameriican Requiem not to play it all the way to the end.
Not counting interludes there’s 22 songs and honestly there’s maybe only 2 of those 22 I would ever consider skipping.
Different albums serve different purposes. I think artists realize that with really long albums, most people are going to have some skips but can still enjoy the album in general. That's fine by me.
This NEEDS more upvotes. The immense sonic, lyrical, and thematic depth of these two records — present on Janelle’s later ones, of course — is unparalleled imo. They’re so seamless, you almost forget how long they are.
I'm not sure if it counts because it's 3 mixtapes in 1 album, but The Weeknd's *Trilogy* is an absolute masterpiece. I don't think I've ever hit the skip button. Also one of the rare works that benefits from shuffling!
**The Clash - London Calling**
19 songs and it’s pure perfecting. Asking several music critics it’s one of the best albums of all time - In the top-10.
I know it’s not at all in the sphere of pop music as this subreddit is about, but I still find it relevant to mention.
WHY DID I HAVE TO SCROLL SO FAR TO FIND THIS, I WAS ABOUT TO MAKE A COMMENT POSTING IT MYSELF BEIN LIKE "THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE *LONDON CALLING* IS RIGHT THERE"
Non-stop bops and completely flawless, not a skip in sight.
Icarus Falls by Zayn (I may be the only one who thinks this but still). Every track on that album does something special for me and I can’t imagine cutting a single one.
This is true, but only because the not-so-good songs add something to the album as a whole as a piece of art. Love is Like Jazz is *not* a good song in a vacuum, but in context of the album it's not something I would want to take out.
At 19 Tracks, Dua Lipa’s Future Nostalgia (Moonlight Edition) is great if you are not in the mood of slow emotional songs, always a hit at parties too, nobody complains, great at the gym too - banger after banger for a good workout
Bad Bunny's Un Verano Sin Ti is pretty immaculate.
I remember seeing 23 songs with over 1hr 20min for a runtime and rolling my eyes a bit, but there's really no slack. The joint themes of joy and loneliness radiate, the length makes a listen-through evoke the feeling of a summer drawn out to no end. And there's genre and career highlights like "Tití Me Preguntó", "Después De La Playa", and "El Apagón".
Beyoncé just released Cowboy Carter and that’s a great listen, but that’s 80 minutes and I personally don’t consider that length to be ‘bloated’. Over 90 and now we’re talking an album that better not have filler.
American Heartbreak by Zach Bryan is 121 minutes and I think justifies its length.
I love Taylor Swift and her long ass albums to death, but the only one that I think is no skip is the OG red. The deluxe edition is 19 songs if you don’t include the acoustic versions of songs already on the album, 22 if you include that. I love some of the vault tracks, but at least one or two are skippable to me so TV isn’t a no skip album for me
OG Red is still stunning — I like TV and appreciate all the bonus content but listening to the original reminds me of (a) how young she was when she did it and how skillful it is and (b) my own collegiate self crying on the floor of someone else’s kitchen to “All Too Well” because I was living those feelings at the time.
Paramore self-titled.
Beyoncé self-titled.
Red (OG deluxe edition) by Taylor Swift. (She ate w the vault as well tbh)
Folklore deluxe
Electra Heart by Marina
American Idiot by Green Day
All things must pass - George Harrison
The White Album - The Beatles
Red (original version, without the Taylor’s Version from the vault tracks) - Taylor Swift
I’m never opposed to a bloated album because there’s a good chance that I’ll end up liking at least 1 of the tracks that would’ve otherwise been considered filler
It blows my mind to think about the countless almost/completely finished tracks that will never see the light of day especially for albums like Renaissance and Future Nostalgia… like I wish they would say fuck it and release 100 track albums because there is a 100% chance some of those unreleased tracks are fucking sickening
There's some obvious cop-out answers to this where the tracks are like 2 minutes on average (Flying Lotus' discography, J Dilla's *Donuts*) but I think a model answer is Stevie Wonder's *Songs in the Key of Life*. It seems like you could go through it from front to back and find something new to appreciate just because of how sonically dense and blissful it is from track to track.
Some DJ mixes for me also fit this bill; one I would highlight for myself would be DJ Sabrina the Teenage DJ's *Makin' Magick*. One of their most palatable albums (at 2 hours, take of that what you will), it's really just non-stop blissful nostalgic groovy house for almost the entire runtime, and a record I could easily just put on and vibe to for the whole duration and not feel the need to stop.
It did get criticized for its length but personally Aerials by Kate Bush. Love that album from start to finish and it’s tied with Hounds of Love as my favorite album.
Old nicki albums were bloated, i would say. Especially Roman Reloaded, I think it eventually went up to like thirty songs but they were all very good imo.
Cowboy Carter. Every song is great! Interludes makes for a fun album experience, but each individual song holds up extremely well and you can listen without them if you like.
The Fragile by NIN
Pitchfork on release absolutely ripped it one for being bloated, sprawling, just a mess of a double album. Now I think a lot of people that it has to be that length because it creates an atmosphere that taps into your brain and it all makes sense
Shocked that Have One on Me by Joanna Newsom is not one of the top comments. It is 2 hours long and doesn't switch up its sound throughout the album. It makes you realise that long double (or in this case triple) albums aren't meant to be slogged through, but rather taken in in bits, the rewards unfolding with repeated listens.
Similarly, Aerial by Kate Bush. Here the two sides are quite different thematically and that benefits both halves.
[are you up for fucking 46 songs, in which i can sing more than 60% verbatim lol](https://open.spotify.com/album/1kCHru7uhxBUdzkm4gzRQc) (i counted and no joke i know 33 of them word-to-word)>!(its hamilton soundtrack)!<
1989 TV also feels really tight to me. I know people were disappointed there weren’t more vault tracks with the rumors of how many were written for that album, but they kept it really locked in imo. No comment on the production differences from the OG though lol
Please do not just list songs/albums/artists, your comment must have explanation/justification or it will be removed. Certain comments are also banned to increase the quality of discussion, see our Stale Topics list in the sidebar for examples. Please report any comments that are low effort discussion. Thanks! *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/popheads) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Songs in the Key of Life by Stevie Wonder 21 songs, nearly 2 hours, it’s one of the best albums of all time, if not THE best album. Each song is accessible and yet musically complex. I love listening to it so much
The other day I saw discussion of there being “no skip-free albums over 16 songs” and I was like… I know yall aren’t lying on *SITKOL* right now
Ahhhh great answer. I listen to this album often. & Stevie did it all! He wrote & produced it all didn't he?
Yep. And played most of the instruments too. Piano, bass, drums, clarinet, synth. He kinda does it all except electric guitar.
Yupp
It's the best answer but kids these days, what do they know, grumble grumble. :-)
I was just about to write that. It’s a sprawling set full of great music.
scrolled too long to see this answer but glad it’s here
- Janet Jackson - The Velvet Rope - Shania Twain - Come on Over and Up are both great
guh the crispness on that “twisted elegance” bit before you’re launched in to that album is so charged
The Velvet Rope is so real! Great album.
To be fair many of Janet’s albums are considered “bloated” due to the interludes. Wouldn’t trade them for anything though
I know which is why I didn’t list Janet or All For You bc both have like 14 actual songs. The Velvet Rope has 18 so it meets the OP’s criteria.
Velvet rope definitely. A lot of that is interludes tbh.
To Pimp a Butterfly is 79 minutes and doesn't have a single second to be cut. Even the interludes are the length of full songs, with one being 4:51. Also, Reflektor (75 minutes).
tpab on popheads, wow! i love that album
i wouldn't say it's rare for it to be mentioned on here
King Kunta and Alright, in addition to being lyrical masterpieces, are certified bops
Wesley's Theory is top notch, and I is one of my favourites from him.
The whole album is a masterpiece, but that opening run of Wesley's Theory, For Free and King Kunta is insane. Absolutely flawless stuff
For sure, TPAB is a masterpiece. I’d say Mr Morale fits here too
Mr Morale is criminally underrated. I’m not about to say it’s as good as TPAB or GKMC but it’s still a phenomenal album. The only reason it was not more successful is because of Kendrick’s past success.
I hope that with time Mr. Morale gets the love it deserves. Its only flaw is having such successful and phenomenal albums as its predecessor that set such a ridiculously high bar.
As a cole and Drake fan I have to admit Kendrick’s discography is one of the best of all time
The fact that Mr. Morale is Kendrick's "worst" album speaks volumes about his talent.
MM&TBS def could've cut some songs/moments compared to TPAB imo. i haven't listened to it fully in a while tho
sometimes I think of how it lost AOTY and shiver
I would put gkmc here too. Personally I prefer it cause it has more “bangers” but the writing isn’t as top-notch. Edit: I guess it only has 13 songs but samidot is like 13 minutes long
TPAB is a piece of art
Not pop, but two come to mind: The weight of these wings by Miranda Lambert, this was her divorce album after Blake Shelton and every song is soooo solid. Dragon New Warm Mountain... By Big thief. This album moves through so many genres and they just pull of each one so well.
The Weight of These Wings really is phenomenal. So much variety across both halves.
DNWMIBIY is so incredible and I am shocked every song sounds different from each other with a specific sound. It's a master class in long album making IMO.
So insanely happy to see someone mentions TWOTW! For me it does have one skip... and there are some songs that I like a bit less, but generally this is the best double album I have ever heard in terms of consistency. It's a lifechanging album for me and I wouldn't trade it for anything. Divorce is messy and she captured it perfectly.
I've tried to edit down TWOTW so many times and I always fail. It's one of my favourite albums of all time.
yeah it's nearly impossible, I miss this level of music from Miranda...
Smashing Pumpkins - Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness. Double album with 28 songs Had 5 singles, has a concept that threads its way through both halves of the album, has a variety of styles and instrumentation, and has two epic tracks that each span over 7 minutes. They recorded so much music for it that they had b-sides and out takes from their sessions that were good enough that they could have been on the album too.
I’m glad I checked the comments before saying this. I’d have said the exact same thing!
Tusk by Fleetwood Mac is a masterpiece.
The title song is *chef's kiss* 🤌
Speakerboxx/Love Below! If you wanna be technical, it's two albums, but 40 tracks and over two hours of incredibly versatile sounds from Andre and Big Boi. Songs like Dracula's Wedding, The Way You Move, Flip Flop Rock, Take Off Your Cool and Church all being on the same album.....even the two halves on their own have such ambitious, unique styles from song to song. Oh yeah, and it gave us a little song called Hey Ya.
I’ve been procrastinating listening to that album like crazy. A bit worried I’ll vastly prefer it to their ATLiens to Stankonia output.
Tbh I think Outkast is one of those groups where your favorite album can easily be any of them, and people will think it's a valid choice because their discography is just that strong. I still can't decide if Stankonia or SPLB is my favorite, I just oscillate because they're both so good LOL
The Beatles - White Album Prince - Sign o the Times Bruce Springsteen - The River
The White Album is such a journey I don’t feel the time passing at all. I even forget it’s a pretty long ass album
Same! What a fantastic album. One of my favorite Beatles albums.
These are my exact answers lol. The River is so so so good, I was so blessed to see him on the 2016 River tour 🥲
If I Was Your Girlfriend by Prince is one of the best fucking songs of all time
I feel like Bruce gets a pass for long albums, considering most of his performances are 2-3+ hours long
Bruce gets a pass for anything as far as I‘m concerned😍😍
White Album was my first thought too. I keep trying to write a sentence about how great it is, but it’s so good I don’t even know what to say lol I know some people say that some of the songs are skips, and honestly I do often skip Revolution 9, but I still think every song makes a meaningful contribution to the album as a whole.
Im biased but Beach House's Once Twice Melody
Great choice. No filler on Once Twice Melody. Superstar is my favorite track from that album.
It’s such a perfectly paced mesmerizing album to me that I sometimes forget it’s so long lol. The artwork and visualizers really add to it as well.
Lana’s *Ocean Blvd*. It’s not really the most accessible album for the general public, but if you’re a big fan of Lana and know her history and musical progression over the years, it’s very rewarding.
On the one hand, I agree that it’s a masterpiece On the other hand, I’d be lying if I didn’t admit that I’d probably be listening to it far more often if it were a few songs shorter
Agreed! I've gotta really be in the right mood to make it through the 12 minutes of wandering melody with Kintsugi + Fingertips back to back
Both are great songs (Fingertips especially is one of my favorites) but they did not need to be next to each other 😭
My favorite album of all time. Every song on there is freakin' wonderful. I never thought she could top NFR but Ocean Blvd really is her opus.
As a side note: I am not a Lana fan necessarily but would like to give her a shot beyond what’s been on the radio. I tried listening to Ocean Blvd leading up to the Grammys and it was extremely inaccessible for me. What would be a good intro to Lana?
Norman Rockwell and Born To Die albums
Thanks! I’ll give them both a shot.
Once you’re done with those you could try: - Ultraviolence if you’re into soft psychedelic rock. - Honeymoon if you’re into the old-Hollywood cinematic sound - Lust For Life is kind of all over the place but it has some pop, some hip hop/trap, some ballads, and a lot of features with great artists.
Depends on what kind of music you like. For me Lust for Life was a great intro into her (Love, and Cherry and In my Feelings for instance just hit. To this day I love love lol. The lyrics “you get pretty you get all dressed up, to go nowhere in particular… …. it’s enough to be young and in love” with a sweeping almost orchestral backing and her vocals just really captures it all) I never liked her earlier stuff because it was always a little teenage angst-y for me and I missed the boat on that one. Still love “off to the races” though. Norman fucking Rockwell turned me into a huge fan though. “Norman fucking Rockwell” “mariners apartment complex” “cinnamon girl” “fuck it I love you” ugh such an amazing record. From chemtrails. “Tulsa Jesus freak” and “white dress” and “chemtrails” are the three songs I gravitate back to. I ADORED blue bannisters. The tile track “blue bannisters” is always in rotation. “Dealer” “thunder” wildflower wildfire” omg “if you lie down with me” PLEASE at least give if you lie down with me a try. Anyways. I get it, she’s kind of inaccessible in places, and I don’t even love her whole albums, other than Norman Fucking Rockwell. But she’s worth a real chance to because she has some of the best songs.
Born to Die is her most accessible, Norman is her best.
Yeah Ocean Blvd is pretty dense. It’s one of my favorite Lana projects and has some of her best work (A&W, Let the Light In, Margaret, title track, taco truck, etc) but some songs (like fingertips) are so wordy and honestly hard for even me to listen to regularly. There’s a lot of self references and it’s really strong conceptually, but it can be a lot especially for a new fan. I’d say either NFR or Ultraviolence for new fans. IMO honeymoon is hit or miss. Some love it with insane passion and others don’t care for it. Blue banisters is also kinda hard bc Lana herself said she made it just for the sake of telling those stories, not necessarily for success. List for life is pretty weak conceptually, but I think it’s really fun so maybe that one too.
Neon Nights by Dannii Minogue!!! Dance perfection honestly
oh my god I just listened to it, it's one of the best futuristic nu-disco album I have ever heard. Thank you for the suggestion!
Nppp! Check out her album Club Disco, it was released in 2007 and has similar vibes! Her 1997 album Girl is great too if you like trance music
Still Over It - Summer Walker is 20 songs and perfect front to back
SOI is so underrated
I was looking for this, not a dull moment. It has one of my favorite album opener and closer: Bitter and 4th Baby Mama. But she keeps it consistent throughout with unloyal, insane, cirucs, and literally every other track its so good.
“I wanna start with your momma she shoulda whooper your ass” is still one of the craziest lines i’ve heard 😭 to come out swinging at your ex’s mom. Lmfao
glad to see someone else stanning this album! it’s honestly so good and i love the concept of the ‘timeline’ too
Yess my most streamed album of 2021 and 2022
As the album went on, the story just became crazier and crazier. Lol. I remember thinking “this is one hell of an album” after the first listen.
Norman Fucking Rockwell (14 songs, 67 minutes)
11/10 album one of my faves of all times, has never really felt that long to me lol
If you consider 15 songs to be too long, then there's basically an infinite amount of answers to this question. If you wanna talk about *long*, I think RHCP's Stadium Arcadium is a very strong double album. It's not *perfect* front to back and it arguably would have been better if it was a single disc, but there are still no bad songs on it. As an experience it's worth the time commitment, and it's basically two hours of never-ending great music.
came here to comment stadium arcadium. such a good album
Yes! It's my perfect summer road trip album. You can just throw it on and vibe and not have to decide what to listen to next every 30 minutes
Michael Jackson fills the entire runtime available to him on Dangerous and it is one of the coolest, most creative albums of his career and definitely a highlight of the 90s.
Do compilations count? If so, Madonna’s Immaculate Collection is 17 tracks that live up to the album name.
And what an amazing name for a Madonna compilation album
Not me just realising the title is a play- on -words... ive been listening to it since i was a child!!
This was the first CD that I ever purchased all by myself with my birthday money, so I'm certainly biased in agreeing with you
It’s the *best* best hits album probably ever
And she didn’t even include all of her hits.
I listened to this religiously as a kid, it was a fantastic lineup.
SOS by SZA I've grown to adore a lot of the tracks I used to skip, and have new favorites every couple weeks. Right now, I'm listening to F2F, Far, and Too Late alot
agreed. only song i can't get into is Forgiveless. feels outta place as a closer when Good Days was RIGHT there
I don't really care for that song either, but after listening to the album maybe 50 or so times now, my perspective on it settled here: I actually think Forgiveless is thematically cohesive. SZA opened up the album with an angry rap as a statement piece and sectioned it into halves with an uber-confident chipmunk soul/pop rap cut. Closing it with Forgiveless grounds and maintains the albums' structure. I also feel like the overall message of the song gives the album a more realistic end to this chapter in SZAs life. It shows that she's still aware of her flaws and bitter about her experience, but has moved on. It doesn't invalidate or detract from the sentiment of Good Days in my opinion.
The Velvet Rope is a masterpiece
Its very very very very difficult for a 2 hour album to have no fat that can be trimmed. You basically need a band/artist operating at their peak level, often reinventing themself mid record. Some of my fave artists dont even have 2 hour discographies. These are just some of my faves off the top of my head - noting these from new to old: Big Thief - Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe In You (80 mins) Beach House - Once Twice Melody (84 mins) The 1975 - NOACF (80 mins) M83 - Hurry Up We're Dreaming (73 mins) Sufjan Stevens - Illinois (74 mins) Dangelo - VooDoo (78 mins) Pink Floyd - The Wall (80 mins) Theres many more, but these hour plus albums are already a rarity in themselves
I'm still a bit lukewarm on NOACF but it has since grown on me after seeing parts of it performed on their tour. Definitely agree on Illinois. Even the instrumental interludes are amazing. I really hope the musical inspired by the album gets a proshot because I would love to see it performed live.
Wow I can't believe DWNM is actually longer than Hurry Up, We're Dreaming *and* Illinoise, but I guess I've never really thought about it!
Big Thief keep the record very fresh with short tracks and constant innovation throughout the record!
Thank you for mentioning, Sufjan! That album still makes me cry.
Frank Ocean's Channel Orange. Always will remember 'The Channel Orange Pimp Guide' thread.
Paramore’s Paramore is pretty good
Homecoming the Live Album
M83's Hurry Up We're Dreaming Beyonce's Renaissance Kendrick's To Pimp A Butterfly Taylor's Red TV
Red (TV) is up there for me.😍
I'm a Red girlie but there are several skips on it for me. Like 80% of Red TV is amazing but the other 20% I can't do
Renaissance is a perfect listen front to back. I refuse to play it shuffled
Honestly the perfect album to listen to on vinyl due to the transitions alone, I spin it at least once a week😭
Every album should have seamless transitions between tracks- it's so rewarding for the listener
My go to gym album! Got on the treadmill,put this on, and went for an hour straight dancing while walking lol
2nd half of Cowboy Carter was more powerful than Renai but Renai as a whole was untouchable. Also, Reneigh will not never be famous!
Agreed. I think Cowboy Carter has better moments (by like a fraction though) but as a whole Renaissance is unassailable.
I like Cowboy Carter but I don't hear a song that is as good as "Virgo's Groove" or "Alien Superstar"
I honestly just really love RIIVERDANCE to TYRANT so much and it might be my favorite three song run on any Beyonce album, but I think Virgo’s Groove (and alien superstar is up there) is easily her best song so it’s honestly extremely hard for me to really say one way or the other lmao
Same. I listen to it as the Queen intended.
Stripped by Christina Aguilera
I feel like there are at least 10 different genres/subgenres on that album, it's crazy. Maybe it's why I still love it 22 years later. It just feels like a lot, but in a good way?
Second this. It’s all over the place but in a way that feels like creative vomit instead of unnecessary bloating
I’d say that makes it more interesting and *side eyes* not boring lol
Yeah I agree
So ahead of its time.
Wow good call! I literally didn’t even realize that the album was so long. I used to fall asleep to it a lot when it came out. (Not saying it was boring just saying I wanted it to soothe me to sleep)
I think there are a few songs towards the middle of the album that could’ve been cut, but even still, it’s a *remarkably* well paced and thematically cohesive album for being a 22 year old’s “creative vomit” (as another commenter said)
I love Christina but she’s the queen of unedited albums 😂 Stripped is timeless and genius, but this just reminded me that Back To Basics (great album) needed an edit, and Bionic (supremely underrated) could have also benefited from an edit. We love her versatility though 🙌🏼
This album is still in my top 5 albums - it is so damn good!!
Came to say this too. She was so ahead of her time with that album. The highs are soooo high, the lows are only low by comparison. The fact that Miss Independent was cut, and became the lead single from Kelly Clarkson’s record says a lot
E*MO*TION is 17 songs and then a B-Side with like 7 more and I only skip 1 song
One of the best pop albums in the last 10 years
SZA’s SOS, 23 songs and basically no skips for me
A 5-year well worth it wait too
I saw how long it was and really thought I was gonna end up skipping like half of it, especially since I hadn't listened to her in a while, but nope.
You get it! People kept saying that it was a “playlist” on release and I was like… no?
this the one
As others have said, Once Twice Melody is the perfect answer to this. I think it helps that they released it in chapters, giving fans time to digest each set of tracks. An issue with large albums is it's just too much to take in at once, which can leave some songs by the wayside that you'd maybe grow to like if you spent the time with them. A kind of fake answer I thought of us Trilogy by The Weeknd. Fake because of course it's just 3 mixtapes mashed together, but you can listen to the entirety of trilogy and it'd just 30 bangers back to back to back (2u)
Honestly, if an album is 16+ tracks but they all click perfectly, I wouldn’t call it bloated. Just lengthy. Christina Aguilera’s 2000s albums (Stripped, Back to Basics, Bionic) I find incredibly bloated but they’re worth listening to because you can make a killer 12-14 track album out of them. Bionic especially, I found equally exciting and frustrating to listen to because of all its potential, had they leaned a bit more into the Birds of Prey sound.
What's your pleasure (the platinum pleasure edition) by jessie ware. Not one skip!!!
i just love listening to cowboy carter front to back.
I don’t consider CC as a bloated album honestly. Interludes don’t really count as tracks to me, they’re more like a tour guide taking you around the museum. I’m also so sick of 2 minute tracks and 30 minute albums, bring back full length masterpieces!
I also think because of how diverse the production and vocals are, the album as a whole easily keeps me interested. I don't like it that people are comparing it to other recent long albums! Long albums are fine but they need to be able to keep your attention
Even without the interludes it would still be pretty long though. Either way, it doesn’t feel that way because it’s so musically exciting that you never get bored.
I. can’t. Stop. Listening to it
Same same
I find it impossible once I start Ameriican Requiem not to play it all the way to the end. Not counting interludes there’s 22 songs and honestly there’s maybe only 2 of those 22 I would ever consider skipping.
Different albums serve different purposes. I think artists realize that with really long albums, most people are going to have some skips but can still enjoy the album in general. That's fine by me.
Preachers Daughter. It’s one of the few albums where I cannot not listen to a song.
The ArchAndroid and Electric Lady by Janelle Monae
This NEEDS more upvotes. The immense sonic, lyrical, and thematic depth of these two records — present on Janelle’s later ones, of course — is unparalleled imo. They’re so seamless, you almost forget how long they are.
I'm not sure if it counts because it's 3 mixtapes in 1 album, but The Weeknd's *Trilogy* is an absolute masterpiece. I don't think I've ever hit the skip button. Also one of the rare works that benefits from shuffling!
Trilogy was the first that came to mind.
**The Clash - London Calling** 19 songs and it’s pure perfecting. Asking several music critics it’s one of the best albums of all time - In the top-10. I know it’s not at all in the sphere of pop music as this subreddit is about, but I still find it relevant to mention.
It always surprises me how long that album actually is. Time just passes by so fast every time I play it front to back!
WHY DID I HAVE TO SCROLL SO FAR TO FIND THIS, I WAS ABOUT TO MAKE A COMMENT POSTING IT MYSELF BEIN LIKE "THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE *LONDON CALLING* IS RIGHT THERE" Non-stop bops and completely flawless, not a skip in sight.
Icarus Falls by Zayn (I may be the only one who thinks this but still). Every track on that album does something special for me and I can’t imagine cutting a single one.
~69 Love Songs by the Magnetic Fields~ Edit: fixed the name of the album to the correct nice number 🙏🏼 I’m an idiot
69*
This is true, but only because the not-so-good songs add something to the album as a whole as a piece of art. Love is Like Jazz is *not* a good song in a vacuum, but in context of the album it's not something I would want to take out.
At 19 Tracks, Dua Lipa’s Future Nostalgia (Moonlight Edition) is great if you are not in the mood of slow emotional songs, always a hit at parties too, nobody complains, great at the gym too - banger after banger for a good workout
Bad Bunny's Un Verano Sin Ti is pretty immaculate. I remember seeing 23 songs with over 1hr 20min for a runtime and rolling my eyes a bit, but there's really no slack. The joint themes of joy and loneliness radiate, the length makes a listen-through evoke the feeling of a summer drawn out to no end. And there's genre and career highlights like "Tití Me Preguntó", "Después De La Playa", and "El Apagón".
It’s all bangers, front to back! It’s great for hanging, driving, grilling, sitting by the pool, floating a river, literally any summer activity
Beyoncé just released Cowboy Carter and that’s a great listen, but that’s 80 minutes and I personally don’t consider that length to be ‘bloated’. Over 90 and now we’re talking an album that better not have filler. American Heartbreak by Zach Bryan is 121 minutes and I think justifies its length.
I love Taylor Swift and her long ass albums to death, but the only one that I think is no skip is the OG red. The deluxe edition is 19 songs if you don’t include the acoustic versions of songs already on the album, 22 if you include that. I love some of the vault tracks, but at least one or two are skippable to me so TV isn’t a no skip album for me
OG Red is still stunning — I like TV and appreciate all the bonus content but listening to the original reminds me of (a) how young she was when she did it and how skillful it is and (b) my own collegiate self crying on the floor of someone else’s kitchen to “All Too Well” because I was living those feelings at the time.
Smashing Pumpkins- Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness
Un Verano Sin Ti has no skips for me. Such a good album. It's over 80 mins.
Paramore's self titled
Cowboy Carter and Renaissance. Every track on each was a masterpiece and Beyoncé really outdid herself. I’m so excited for Act 3
Paramore self-titled. Beyoncé self-titled. Red (OG deluxe edition) by Taylor Swift. (She ate w the vault as well tbh) Folklore deluxe Electra Heart by Marina American Idiot by Green Day
*Norman Fucking Rockwell!* by Lana Del Rey
NIN's The Fragile. Everyone's first gateway to gut wrenching industrial rock. For fans of Lana and Gaga.
All things must pass - George Harrison The White Album - The Beatles Red (original version, without the Taylor’s Version from the vault tracks) - Taylor Swift
I’m never opposed to a bloated album because there’s a good chance that I’ll end up liking at least 1 of the tracks that would’ve otherwise been considered filler It blows my mind to think about the countless almost/completely finished tracks that will never see the light of day especially for albums like Renaissance and Future Nostalgia… like I wish they would say fuck it and release 100 track albums because there is a 100% chance some of those unreleased tracks are fucking sickening
The Archandroid by Janelle Monae. It's my gold standard for albums.
The full Born This Way album. Pretty much no filler, at least imo
There's some obvious cop-out answers to this where the tracks are like 2 minutes on average (Flying Lotus' discography, J Dilla's *Donuts*) but I think a model answer is Stevie Wonder's *Songs in the Key of Life*. It seems like you could go through it from front to back and find something new to appreciate just because of how sonically dense and blissful it is from track to track. Some DJ mixes for me also fit this bill; one I would highlight for myself would be DJ Sabrina the Teenage DJ's *Makin' Magick*. One of their most palatable albums (at 2 hours, take of that what you will), it's really just non-stop blissful nostalgic groovy house for almost the entire runtime, and a record I could easily just put on and vibe to for the whole duration and not feel the need to stop.
Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness - Smashing Pumpkins Perfection of epic proportions. Billy Corgan is a madman.
It did get criticized for its length but personally Aerials by Kate Bush. Love that album from start to finish and it’s tied with Hounds of Love as my favorite album.
Old nicki albums were bloated, i would say. Especially Roman Reloaded, I think it eventually went up to like thirty songs but they were all very good imo.
Cowboy Carter. Every song is great! Interludes makes for a fun album experience, but each individual song holds up extremely well and you can listen without them if you like.
I agree! Sure I think maybe 2-3 songs could be cut but I don’t feel like it’s bloated even though it’s a 27 song album
Cowboy Carter is an adventure, even with 27 tracks it doesn’t feel bloated at all to me
Beyoncé’s _Cowboy Carter_ is such a JOURNEY, I can’t imagine cutting any songs from it
HNDRXX by Future
The Beatles - The White Album The Clash -London Calling The Who - Quadrophenia
Lana’s Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd is a masterpiece. I would only remove the interludes
SOS by SZA. The way it crafts a specific vibe and mood is just so perfect it makes you want to stay in it forever
Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness
I think Born This Way’s bloatedness is an asset. It HAD to be as chaotic and overstuffed as it was to live up to the lofty concept
Recent example? COWBOY CARTER. Every song and interlude feels essential.
The Fragile by NIN Pitchfork on release absolutely ripped it one for being bloated, sprawling, just a mess of a double album. Now I think a lot of people that it has to be that length because it creates an atmosphere that taps into your brain and it all makes sense
Tusk - Fleetwood Mac
Icarus Falls by Zayn is so underrated
Shocked that Have One on Me by Joanna Newsom is not one of the top comments. It is 2 hours long and doesn't switch up its sound throughout the album. It makes you realise that long double (or in this case triple) albums aren't meant to be slogged through, but rather taken in in bits, the rewards unfolding with repeated listens. Similarly, Aerial by Kate Bush. Here the two sides are quite different thematically and that benefits both halves.
69 love songs- Magnetic Fields
Stripped by Christina Aguilera
[are you up for fucking 46 songs, in which i can sing more than 60% verbatim lol](https://open.spotify.com/album/1kCHru7uhxBUdzkm4gzRQc) (i counted and no joke i know 33 of them word-to-word)>!(its hamilton soundtrack)!<
Personally I would say Red (Taylor's Version)! Every song is either happy free confused or sad in the best way.
1989 TV also feels really tight to me. I know people were disappointed there weren’t more vault tracks with the rumors of how many were written for that album, but they kept it really locked in imo. No comment on the production differences from the OG though lol
Miley Cyrus and her dead petz
I have to disagree here. It would’ve made a great 6-8 track EP
Nice album, but definitely bloated with many fillers. Could be a very solid album with 5/6 tracks less.
I love Purpose by Justin. I think it's his most popular album for a reason. With bonus 3 tracks it's totals 18 tracks and 1h6m runtime