Best Albums to Test Your Speakers

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1. 1
   The Dark Side of the MoonPink Floyd

   The Dark Side of the Moon

   Pink Floyd · 1973 · Rock

   A seamless suite on time, money, madness and mortality, built from sighing synths, saxophone, heartbeat pulses and tape collage. It spent years on the charts for good reason: the production still sounds vast and the sequencing flows as one continuous piece. The benchmark for hi-fi demonstration and a cornerstone of any collection.

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2. 2
   Random Access MemoriesDaft Punk

   Random Access Memories

   Daft Punk · 2013 · Electronic

   A lavish live-instrument turn away from samples, chasing the warmth of 1970s and 80s studio craft with collaborators like Nile Rodgers. 'Get Lucky' became inescapable. Polished, reverent and grand.

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3. 3
   AjaSteely Dan

   Aja

   Steely Dan · 1977 · Rock

   Immaculate jazz-rock of obsessive studio polish and cryptic lyrics, played by session legends. Smooth on the surface, deep underneath. An audiophile favourite and their masterpiece.

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4. 4
   Brothers in ArmsDire Straits

   Brothers in Arms

   Dire Straits · 1985 · Rock

   A polished, digital-era blockbuster of immaculate guitar and 'Money for Nothing'. Slick and enormous. A CD-era landmark.

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5. 5
   MezzanineMassive Attack

   Mezzanine

   Massive Attack · 1998 · Electronic

   Dark, paranoid trip-hop that traded the warmth of their early work for dread and dub bass, anchored by 'Teardrop' and 'Angel'. Immersive and cinematic. A late-90s landmark.

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6. 6
   ThrillerMichael Jackson

   Thriller

   Michael Jackson · 1982 · Pop

   The best-selling album of all time and a flawless run of pop, funk, rock and balladry produced with Quincy Jones. Every single became a standard, and the craft holds up decades on. The benchmark for mainstream pop ambition.

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7. 7
   Kind of BlueMiles Davis

   Kind of Blue

   Miles Davis · 1959 · Jazz

   The best-selling jazz album of all time and the gateway record for countless listeners, built on modal improvisation and an unmatched band. Cool, spacious and endlessly calming, it never wears out. If you own one jazz record, start here.

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8. 8
   OK ComputerRadiohead

   OK Computer

   Radiohead · 1997 · Alternative & Indie

   A prescient album about alienation in a wired, accelerating world, expanding rock with electronics, odd time signatures and dread. 'Paranoid Android' and 'No Surprises' anchor a record that still sounds like the future arriving. Frequently named among the greatest ever made.

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9. 9
   UntrueBurial

   Untrue

   Burial · 2007 · Electronic

   Ghostly, rain-soaked dubstep built from pitched vocal fragments and vinyl crackle, evoking late-night London. Deeply atmospheric and emotional. One of the century's defining electronic albums.

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10. 10
    RumoursFleetwood Mac

    Rumours

    Fleetwood Mac · 1977 · Rock

    Recorded as the band members' relationships disintegrated, the tension fuels every track, turning heartbreak into impossibly hooky soft-rock. The harmonies, the songwriting balance across three writers and the crystalline production made it one of the best-selling albums ever. Comfort listening with real emotional undertow.

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