Colossal Audio Rating System

After writing my album review for Ipecac Neat i realized i didn't want a normal number/grade rating system. So on the spur of the moment i created a rating system that i think fits how i want to describe an album. My rating system has 8 levels: Classic, Hidden Gem, Classic in the making, Must Buy, Worth 10 Dollars, Illegal Download, Skip-able, and It Didn't Happen.

Classic:

Classic is pretty self explanatory and has very rare uses. A classic album is an album that is, in my opinion, perfect from head to toe. I can't have any doubts about the album and i am able to place it against other classic albums and feel comfortable. For a classic to truly be a classic it has to survive the test of time and receive critical acclaim. This means that any album i name a classic has to have been out at least 5 years and still have incredible power. Similarly it can't just be me who believes the album is great. The word classic couldn't fit so many diverse albums if it were merely one mans opinion.

Hidden Gem:

Hidden Gem is a term that will be used a lot with great albums that i feel haven't received enough attention.These albums are basically classics however they lack the critical acclaim they deserve. A hidden gem will be placed up against the classic albums in the same type of comparisons but won't completely hit the mark. Hopefully by labeling an album as a Hidden Gem someone may see it and help spread the album around.

Classic in the Making:

A classic in the Making is an album that i appreciate greatly. It may have received alot of attention and may have survived the test of time but just wasn't perfect. There was just something missing that hopefully i'll be able to elaborate on.

Must Buy:

Another self explanatory rating. Anything above a Must Buy usually fits into this category. A Must Buy album is an album that may have had a few faults and deserves a spot in my ipod/CD collection.

Worth 10 Dollars:

The Worth 10 Dollars category means that the album was good.  There are more things wrong with the album than the Must Buy albums but good enough to deserve a place in my CD collection.

Illegal Download:

This does not mean that i am condoning downloading an album but rather an allusion for "if you want to hear it listen to it on youtube or borrow a copy from someone." Basically i feel that the album doesn't really deserve much money because it was either bad or lacked effort.

Skip-able:

These albums didn't do anything for me. I may have listened to it out of pure interest but i didn't feel like i gained anything from it. If i put down an artist that you just gotta listen to the discography of in this category chances are you'll get it somehow anyway but for those who aren't really interested in that album i wouldn't recommend because it's a waste of time. This category will be hard to fill considering that it takes a lot of nothing to make me think an album can be skipped.

It Didn't Happen:

This is the definition of a terrible album. An album that i just want to erase from my memory because nothing worked at all. An album that i'd try to give away in hopes that i don't see it again. I hope not to have any album in this category just because its hard for me to hate any type of music.


That is the basic rating system. Albums, EPs and Mixtapes will all be set to this standard. If there are any questions or anything that needs to be explained in better detail please let me know.