X, Los Angeles (side A)

For an obviously canonical album, Los Angeles has a lot of unusual qualities and quirks.  Albums often ease their way in, but Los Angeles starts with one of its most aggressive tunes — while there's a bit of a let-down, the sequencing still manages to be a strength.  John Doe is one of the group's focal members as the male voice, but his bass gets mostly lost in the mix.  The lowest frequencies are filled by the kick drum, and his bass ends up fighting with the lower guitar frequencies.  It's hard to tell if this was on purpose because of weak playing, as the bass is just too hard to hear.  The guitar playing and drumming are both really consistent for what seems like an inexperienced band — they keep up their intensity and hold together nicely.  Exene's lead vocals are consistently special, and Ray Manzarek's occasional organ solos show a perfectly jagged and jarring side of his playing beyond anything I can recall on a Doors album.  The recording and mix are pretty lo-fi and hollow and unimpressive, but it accentuates the energy of the band as much as it gets in the way.  The grainy, powerful, and iconic cover photo emphasizes and draws attention to the band's impressive energy.