So why is Louis XIV’s The Best Little Secrets Are Kept on this best 1,000 albums ever thing?
This is one dirty, even sleazy, hard rocking and absolute gem of an album.
I’m never displeased when I throw The Best Little Secrets Are Kept on.
Pick any of its bountiful array of songs, and it easily outranks the best output from a thousand other wannabes plying their trade on the dirty and deep end of the rock and roll pool.
Tim Sendra of All Music has a fun way of describing this band: “Louis XIV aren’t for the faint of heart – more like for the filthy of heart and dirty of mind.”
The guitar hooks throughout are also dirty (of course), sweet, and delicious. Exhibit A: the electric and crushing “God Killed the Queen.”
I could say precisely the same about “Hey Teacher,” which is also arguably just a touch catchier. And dig the glam/sleaze/magnificence of you keep on telling me these pretty little lies.
If the entire album played in this kind of mode, The Best Little Secrets Are Kept would still be pretty great, but “A Letter to Dominique” brings in a (slightly) gentler, bouncy, and David Bowie-esque vibe that still somehow manages to be hilariously sleazy (and wonderful).
“Illegal Tender” has a throwback New York Dolls vibe in the best kind of way.
“Finding Out True Love Is Blind” has a slightly more pop leaning sound, which brings us a more accessible version of the band that’s wildly appealing.
As of this writing, Louis XIV has produced just one full-length album (Slick Dogs and Ponies, from 2008) and an EP since The Best Little Secrets Are Kept was released, with nothing that quite reaches its extremely high level.
Sometimes bands can catch lightning in a bottle, and we’re thankful that we get to hear the results.
Oh, they put out a single, “Playtime,” in 2020, and it’s pretty different stuff – it leans pop and even a bit soulful – but it’s got that strange and dark vibe that The Best Little Secrets Are Kept plays in.
Some stats & info about Louis XIV – The Best Little Secrets Are Kept
- What kind of musical stylings does this album represent? Indie Rock, SoCal Bands, Garage Punk, Rock Music, Glam Rock
- Rolling Stone’s greatest 500 albums ranking – not ranked!
- All Music’s rating – 4 out of 5 stars
- When was The Best Little Secrets Are Kept released? 2005
- My ranking, the one you’re reading right now – #146 out of 1,000
Louis XIV’s The Best Little Secrets Are Kept on Spotify
A lyrical snippet from Louis XIV’s The Best Little Secrets Are Kept that’s evocative of the album in some way, maybe
You keep on telling me these pretty lies, well I’m just a man and want you instead of the drugs that get me high.
What does the “best 1,000 albums ever” mean and why are you doing this?
Yeah, I know it’s audacious, a little crazy (okay, maybe a lot cray cray), bordering on criminal nerdery.
But here’s what it’s NOT: a definitive list of the Greatest Albums of All-Time. This is 100% my own personal super biased, incredibly subjective review of what my top 1,000 albums are, ranked in painstaking order over the course of doing research for nearly a year, Rob from High Fidelity style. Find out more about why I embarked on a best 1,000 albums ever project.