Fantaverse Top 100 Albums of All Time (THREAD #1): #70-#61

Anything music related. Latest songs, good new bands, and blasts from the past.

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Re: Fantaverse Top 100 Albums of All Time (THREAD #1): #70-#

Post by silversurfer19 »

Album No.66

englishozzy Led Zeppelin, "Houses of the Holy", 1973 - Probably my least favourite Led Zep album. Just never really been a favourite, and other than Over The Hills I [gasp], find myself a little bored with the record. They did much, much better prior to this, and even one record after!

Geezer The Beatles, "Meet The Beatles",1964 - I know most of these songs off be heart, and while they are indeed brilliantly catchy pop songs, and they should be applauded for that, I just feel that what came later surpasses this stuff so much it reduces it's impact. Unfortunate, but I feel that is the case.

BleedBlackandGold StellaStarr*, "StellaStarr*", 2003 - Funnily enough I also got this record in a bargain bin! Loved some of the songs, (Jenny is a personal favourite with it's obvious Pixies influence). Hasn't had too many plays recently though and when I listened to it again yesterday much of it didn't really stick with me. And it certainly isn't post-punk, if you need to give it a genre. It's just indie music, and I was surprised to see such a genre even featured in your countdown!

Leestu eels, "Beautiful Freak", 1996 - When I saw this was your next pick I decided to put this record on again. Man, this is a fabulous album, not a dud song on there. From Novocaine to Susan's House, Spunky or Your Lucky Day in Hell, it's just a great record.

NSpan The Redwalls, "De Nova" , 2005 - Yeah, these guys just don't sit that well with. Just sound like they are imitating an era a little too much, and though sometimes that can be appreciated (BRMC), this just doesn't.

numbersix Caribou, “Swim”, 2010
I'm sure a couple of years ago when this was released it received rave reviews, so I checked out a couple of songs on youtube. It didn't grab me, so ultimately I haven't sought them out since. However, as soon as that Odessa beat hit when I pressed play it was very familiar. I think it gets played on a few adverts over here and it's very catchy. Really enjoyable and maybe I need to seek out more of his work. Is this the best starting place?

transformers Dead Kennedys, "Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables", 1980 - I think you (and others) featured these songs in your 100 song countdown, and along with some other tracks featured earlier in the countdown I was hooked. Great stuff.

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Re: Fantaverse Top 100 Albums of All Time (THREAD #1): #70-#

Post by silversurfer19 »

By the way, I added Tranny's pick into the post. And I'll probably hold off on the next post until tonight when we have a couple more submissions.

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Re: Fantaverse Top 100 Albums of All Time (THREAD #1): #70-#

Post by numbersix »

Awesome choice, Tranny. Your posting of California Uber Alles is what drew my attention to the band. It's a great song and this album is high on my list.

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Re: Fantaverse Top 100 Albums of All Time (THREAD #1): #70-#

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silversurfer19 wrote: numbersix Caribou, “Swim”, 2010
I'm sure a couple of years ago when this was released it received rave reviews, so I checked out a couple of songs on youtube. It didn't grab me, so ultimately I haven't sought them out since. However, as soon as that Odessa beat hit when I pressed play it was very familiar. I think it gets played on a few adverts over here and it's very catchy. Really enjoyable and maybe I need to seek out more of his work. Is this the best starting place?
If you dig my two tunes, then Swim is for you. The problem is that this record surprised fans of Caribou as his previous albums were more indie-pop (with Krautrock influences). If that sounds more you then get their previous album, Andorra, which is also really good.

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Re: Fantaverse Top 100 Albums of All Time (THREAD #1): #70-#

Post by NSpan »

englishozzy Led Zeppelin, "Houses of the Holy", 1973
I disagree with anyone who said that this album isn't representative of Led Zeppelin's sound. In fact, I'd argue that this album MOST represents their sound (though I'd hear arguments for IV). There wasn't an original note on the first three albums, and IV was transitional. Don't get me wrong, I love all four of those albums... but they're extremely derivative--which isn't even a bad thing, just an objective fact. Houses of the Holy represents a band ready to create something entirely new. It was a bold step forward, in my opinion. I personally prefer this era over the early days. But that's all it is: a preference. If you wanna hear blues covers played LOUD (and with expert skill), the 1969-71 records will do the trick. If you're into the slightly-proggy hard rock (with incredible arrangements courtesy of John Paul Jones), the 1971-76 era is probably for you. And, of course, you can like both. Just don't tell me that In Through The Out Door was their best album. Because that's just crazy talk.

Geezer The Beatles, "Meet The Beatles",1964
Growing up, I listened to a lot of my dad's records. And he had a pretty comprehensive Beatles collection. But they were the bastardized versions that were released for the American market. That's how I got into the band... so I have a lot of nostalgia for those particular records. But when I grew up and realized that I wasn't listening to the albums as the Beatles had intended, I was a bit taken aback. Nowadays, my collection is pared down to only original British albums (complimented by the Anthology series, the Past Masters set, and a range of bootlegs). At this point, I know the original track orders so well that the American albums have a mish-mashed Frankenstein feel to them. I imagine you (Geez) will read this as the ramblings of a music snob... but I assure you that I am more than happy to listen to ANY Beatles music no matter how it's presented. Incredible band that made consistently brilliant music throughout their entire run. It's just nice that the original albums are actually easier to obtain than stuff like "Meet the Beatles"... How'd you wind up with this version anyway?

BleedBlackandGold StellaStarr*, "StellaStarr*", 2003
Not bad. I'm pretty sure I've actually seen these guys perform live (opening for another act)... just can't recall the particular gig. I know you already got berated (multiple times) for calling this "post-punk revival." I'd describe this song as Nouveau Noise/Alt Rock. I might even call it "College Rock"--but I suppose that moniker was just a placeholder until more apt genre names came about.

Leestu eels, "Beautiful Freak", 1996
I've always enjoyed this band. Though this is the only album of theirs I've ever owned. I guess something about their style never drove me to search out more. But, whenever I revisit Beautiful Freak, I always dig it.

numbersix Caribou, “Swim”, 2010
This didn't blow me away, but there was definitely something to it that makes me want to revisit these songs at some point in the very near future. I definitely see how this could grow on you. Not entirely different from Zoot Woman in terms of production aesthetics.

silversurfer Wilco, "A Ghost Is Born", 2004
Personally, I prefer their '90s stuff. I thought this album started their reputation of "the Radiohead of alt-country." Okay, I've never actually heard anyone say that... but that's the way they were regarded in the '00s. And I think that went to their heads a bit.

transformers, Dead Kennedys, "Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables", 1980
I just bought this album a couple of days ago. It's awesome.
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Re: Fantaverse Top 100 Albums of All Time (THREAD #1): #70-#

Post by NSpan »

I just noticed that my individual responses move steadily from verbose to rather brief as I progress through the songs each day (response fatigue?). Maybe we should consider reversing the order in which they're presented once we hit the halfway mark?
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Re: Fantaverse Top 100 Albums of All Time (THREAD #1): #70-#

Post by Geezer »

NSpan wrote: Geezer The Beatles, "Meet The Beatles",1964
Growing up, I listened to a lot of my dad's records. And he had a pretty comprehensive Beatles collection. But they were the bastardized versions that were released for the American market. That's how I got into the band... so I have a lot of nostalgia for those particular records. But when I grew up and realized that I wasn't listening to the albums as the Beatles had intended, I was a bit taken aback. Nowadays, my collection is pared down to only original British albums (complimented by the Anthology series, the Past Masters set, and a range of bootlegs). At this point, I know the original track orders so well that the American albums have a mish-mashed Frankenstein feel to them. I imagine you (Geez) will read this as the ramblings of a music snob... but I assure you that I am more than happy to listen to ANY Beatles music no matter how it's presented. Incredible band that made consistently brilliant music throughout their entire run. It's just nice that the original albums are actually easier to obtain than stuff like "Meet the Beatles"... How'd you wind up with this version anyway?
It's called the Internet, Spannaus. They've got all kinds of cool stuff there.

Also, I anticipated at least one of you snobs would give me the old "It's not a real album blah blah blah" with this one. I understand that it is not the album as constructed the way the band intended, that doesn't stop it from being BETTER.
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Re: Fantaverse Top 100 Albums of All Time (THREAD #1): #70-#

Post by NSpan »

Geezer wrote:It's called the Internet, Spannaus. They've got all kinds of cool stuff there.
The interwebs, eh? The reason I asked is because I had just checked Amazon to see if your album is readily available. It isn't. Amazon basically redirected me to the original UK counterpart. I may be your elder, but I know how the internet works... and, yeah, you can find anything. But you (evidently) know that this isn't a "real" album... so why go out of your way to get it?
Geezer wrote:Also, I anticipated at least one of you snobs would give me the old "It's not a real album blah blah blah" with this one. I understand that it is not the album as constructed the way the band intended, that doesn't stop it from being BETTER.
:roll: Before I posted it, I added the caveat to my response indicating that I love the Beatles in ANY incarnation. I wasn't shitting on your album choice. That said, following your logic of which LP is "BETTER"... if you're content with compilations, why not just get the early years set (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1962%E2%80%931966) and list that as your 66th favorite album of all time?
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Re: Fantaverse Top 100 Albums of All Time (THREAD #1): #70-#

Post by silversurfer19 »

Album No.65

Alyson
To Be Added At Later Date

englishozzy
Skyhooks, "Ego is Not a Dirty Word"
, 1975

Image

An Aussie band that a work mate got me into, after doing some digging this is my favourite album from the band.

"Ego (Is Not a Dirty Word)"

"Love on the Radio"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=piyaRB_Ecxk

Geezer
Staind, "14 Shades of Grey "
, 2003

Image

1.Price to Play – 4 stars
2.How About You – 5 stars
3.So Far Away – 5 stars
4.Yesterday – 5 stars
5.Fray – 4 stars
6.Zoe Jane – 5 stars
7.Fill Me Up – 4 stars
8.Layne – 3 stars
9.Falling Down – 4 stars
10.Reality – 3 stars
11.Tonight – 3 stars
12.Could it Be – 4 stars
13.Blow Away – 3 stars
14.Intro – 2 stars

Another band that for me, rises above the typical modern rock, and this one hails from about 10 minutes from where I grew up. So they hold a bit of a special place in my heart. I listened to more than my share of Staind while in high school, and I still love two of their albums enough to put them in this countdown.

"Zoe Jane"

"How About You"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RByiEBoAZiw

BleedBlackandGold
A Global Threat, "What The Fuck Will Change?"
, 1999

Image

An amazing street punk album all the that you'd want in this style of record agression, speed and something to say!

"Religious Scam'"


Leestu
Billy Bragg, "Brewing Up With Billy Bragg"
, 1984

Image

"Island of No Return"

"The Saturday Boy"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2CBWDp71UPM

NSpan
Old Crow Medicine Show, "Big Iron World"
, 2006

Image

1. Down Home Girl (Leiber/Butler)
2. Cocaine Habit (Traditional)
3. Minglewood Blues (Lewis)
4. My Good Gal
5. James River Blues
6. New Virginia Creeper
7. Union Maid (Guthrie)
8. Let It Alone (Traditional)
9. God's Got It
10. I Hear Them All
11. Don't Ride That Horse
12. Bobcat Tracks

An interesting aspect of the "British Invasion" of the 1960s is just how much these foreign musicians brought home with them from America. While on tour, they inevitably stumbled across roots music of the American South: folk, country, bluegrass, and the blues. First-hand exposure to these genres led to some of the greatest rock albums recorded (including the Rolling Stones' Beggar's Banquet and The Kinks' Muswelll Hillbillies). Flash-forward 30 years to a Tennessee street-corner where a ragtag group of musicians play for spare change from passersby. Their music is a mix of originals, traditional songs and standards from a bygone era. These guys are the genuine article, but they're a new generation. Their sound is deeply rooted in the music of their home-state, but their cover of the classic "Down Home Girl" is clearly informed by the Rolling Stones' version. It's a unique sound... a reversal of a reversal. By sheer luck, the band is discovered on a street corner by a prominent member of the Nashville music scene. The members of Old Crow Medicine Show went from playing in the streets to headlining at the Grand Ole Opry practically overnight.

"I Hear Them All"

"Down Home Girl"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cpvzwh6rL_I

numbersix
The Rolling Stones, “Sticky Fingers”
, 1971

Image

I’m decidedly more Stones than the Beatles, and this album marks a phase in their career where they really started making music that felt like them. While some of their 60s output wore their influences on their sleeves, around this time the influences merged into something entirely distinct. The Stones were officially rock gods. Sticky Fingers is such an easy record to sit through. It’s a great blend of raw rock n roll (Brown Sugar has to be one of the best album openers of all time), but the tender moments balance it out. And hell, those tender moments are stunning in themselves.

I think a good way to determine the quality of an album is to judge it by its lesser tracks, so I’m posting their throwaway rock-out Bitch and the drug ballad Sister Morphine instead of hits like Brown Sugar, Wild Horses, etc. Surely these show how truly great this album is.

"Bitch"

"Sister Morphine"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C39kQoprfP0

Ron Burgundy
To be added at later date

silversurfer
The Kills, "Keep On Your Mean Side"
, 2003

Image

I can still remember me sitting in the bath listening to this record for the first time (and now all of you can picture it too...[wink]) reading the liner notes and imagining these two artists, who monickered themselves VV and Hotel, bounced back ideas between NY and London as they attempted to cobble together a debut record which would become a vital part of my record collection. And in between making bubbles with the bubble bath and cleaning between my toes, I was stunned by this little record. It was aggressive, punky, fun and most importantly, it ROCKED. From the opening intermittent guitar riffs on "Superstition", through the snarl of "Cat Claw" and the yearning of "Wait" to the immediacy of sing-a-long "Fuck The People", The Kills had crafted a rock album which was dark, grimy, and a totally new take on blues, with a bruising bass and cool slide guitar fervently echoing Alison Mosshart's wailing vocals. It was kick ass, and it made me hungry for more. I've every other Kills record which has been released since, and while they all have their moments, this still stands to me as their shining glory, and any time I feel a little dirty, these guys know how to wipe me clean! (oh yeah baby!)

"Cat Claw"

"Hitched"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lo4eKy5VtcI

transformers,
Beastie Boys, "Licensed to Ill"
, 1986

Image

"No Sleep till Brooklyn"

"Paul Revere"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cCEZfCh7bEs

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Re: Fantaverse Top 100 Albums of All Time (THREAD #1): #70-#

Post by Leestu »

englishozzy Skyhooks, "Ego is Not a Dirty Word", 1975 - A fun band that I never took seriously enough to get a whole album, just enjoyed their singles...but that's okay...I don't think they took themselves seriously either. They were probably just as surprised at their success as everybody else.

Geezer Staind, "14 Shades of Grey ", 2003 - I am not going to say anything negative...lyrics seem to be a bit of a theme across the board today.

BleedBlackandGold A Global Threat, "What The Fuck Will Change?, 1999 - My problem with modern punk (compared to classic punk) is what the fuck will change? Judging by this song not much. Having said that it was still enjoyable enough although I generally prefer a bit more subtlety to lyrics, but then again this is the punk genre we are talking about.

NSpan Old Crow Medicine Show, "Big Iron World", 2006 - Alt-country is still too country for my tastes. Although in small doses like these two songs it's okay, I just can't imagine a whole album maintaining my interest.

numbersix The Rolling Stones, “Sticky Fingers”, 1971 - A fine album. For a lesser track ;) Sister Morphine is an incredible song.

silversurfer The Kills, "Keep On Your Mean Side", 2003 - I first heard these guys at a festival last year. We needed a break after dancing pretty energetically to The Grates but after about half a song The Kills sound captivated us and drew us back into the crowd. The break had to wait. Ever since I've been meaning to get their albums. I'll add this to the list.

transformers, Beastie Boys, "Licensed to Ill", 1986 - My youngest (11 years old) knows all the lyrics to No Sleep Till Brooklyn and can sing the whole song. Sometimes I am so proud of my kids :lol:

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Re: Fantaverse Top 100 Albums of All Time (THREAD #1): #70-#

Post by numbersix »

NSpan wrote:I just noticed that my individual responses move steadily from verbose to rather brief as I progress through the songs each day (response fatigue?). Maybe we should consider reversing the order in which they're presented once we hit the halfway mark?
I notice I certainly don't give the last song I listen to enough time, so I just change the order of whose song I listen to.

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Re: Fantaverse Top 100 Albums of All Time (THREAD #1): #70-#

Post by numbersix »

Ozzy: It was good knowing they were an Oz act, as I would have been much harsher on their derivative glam style. So they're Australia's answer to T.Rex? I'm not a fan of that genre of music (besides a bit of Bowie) but this was certainly fun.

Geez: I think Boosch joked about it earlier, but I'm starting to realise that I don't like bands with typos in their names. Hell, I don't even have any Beatles records in my Top 100. This did absolutely nothing for me. It sounds like a very bland pop band (think Maroon 5), just with a brashness of metal thrown in on occasion.

John L: Well, glad to see some more traditional punk at last. This doesn't really stand out from the true greats of the genre, but it was still pretty decent.

Leetsu: I think I'm beginning to understand my apathy towards Bragg. He just seems to write one song over and over. The same echoey production value, the same strumming of the electric guitar, the same over-earnest lyrics about social injustice. It's a good song, but I doubt I'd get through an entire album.

NSpan: While the music was pretty decent, doing a double reversal just makes you end up in the same place. At least the British invasion incorporated this traditional style into something new. And if you liked that you could find the earlier originals. The problem is why would you bother with these guys when they're nothing new to add?

SS: I remember getting an advance copy of this album to review for my college newspaper. There are some decent songs (Fuck the People is my favourite), but I couldn't see them as being anything but Scotland's answer to The White Stripes. They've built up a bigger audience these days, but I'm not tempted to delve deeper into their catalogue.

Tranny: This record sounds great. I must get a Beasties album one of these days.

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Re: Fantaverse Top 100 Albums of All Time (THREAD #1): #70-#

Post by Geezer »

NSpan wrote:
Geezer wrote:It's called the Internet, Spannaus. They've got all kinds of cool stuff there.
The interwebs, eh? The reason I asked is because I had just checked Amazon to see if your album is readily available. It isn't. Amazon basically redirected me to the original UK counterpart. I may be your elder, but I know how the internet works... and, yeah, you can find anything. But you (evidently) know that this isn't a "real" album... so why go out of your way to get it?
Geezer wrote:Also, I anticipated at least one of you snobs would give me the old "It's not a real album blah blah blah" with this one. I understand that it is not the album as constructed the way the band intended, that doesn't stop it from being BETTER.
:roll: Before I posted it, I added the caveat to my response indicating that I love the Beatles in ANY incarnation. I wasn't shitting on your album choice. That said, following your logic of which LP is "BETTER"... if you're content with compilations, why not just get the early years set (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1962%E2%80%931966) and list that as your 66th favorite album of all time?
Because in the minds of every American at the time, this WAS a real album, because With the Beatles wasn't released here. I'm not entirely sure how the recording industry worked back then, but IF one of the largest and most powerful countries in the world can't even buy the record until it is released in an altered, though very similar way, then that altered album seems to me like it should be considered an album unto itself and not a compilation. I've listed to both, I like the "Meet The" version better than the "With The" version.
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Re: Fantaverse Top 100 Albums of All Time (THREAD #1): #70-#

Post by NSpan »

numbersix wrote:NSpan: While the music was pretty decent, doing a double reversal just makes you end up in the same place. At least the British invasion incorporated this traditional style into something new. And if you liked that you could find the earlier originals. The problem is why would you bother with these guys when they're nothing new to add?
On paper, that's true. But in real life, things are organic. The process of bringing American roots music to the UK, then having a generation of Americans grow up listening to the result, you're inevitably going to get something new when they go out and create music of their own.

It's like a game of telephone. It might be identifiable and similar, but the result is always altered in some way during the process. I figure that's how most genres emerge. Music is just a constant evolution. Country and blues happen to particularly embrace that notion.

And, in this specific instance, I'd actually argue that Old Crow Medicine Show sounds NOTHING like the "country" music of modern Nashville. If bands like OCMS can make Nashville relevant again, I'd be very interested in where the scene goes.
numbersix wrote:
NSpan wrote:I just noticed that my individual responses move steadily from verbose to rather brief as I progress through the songs each day (response fatigue?). Maybe we should consider reversing the order in which they're presented once we hit the halfway mark?
I notice I certainly don't give the last song I listen to enough time, so I just change the order of whose song I listen to.
Damn you Six. Damn you and your practical ideas.
Last edited by NSpan on October 27th, 2012, 3:46 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Fantaverse Top 100 Albums of All Time (THREAD #1): #70-#

Post by NSpan »

Geezer wrote:Because in the minds of every American at the time, this WAS a real album, because With the Beatles wasn't released here. I'm not entirely sure how the recording industry worked back then, but IF one of the largest and most powerful countries in the world can't even buy the record until it is released in an altered, though very similar way, then that altered album seems to me like it should be considered an album unto itself and not a compilation. I've listed to both, I like the "Meet The" version better than the "With The" version.
There's only one flaw in that argument: you were born in the late 80s. You didn't grow up listening to Meet the Beatles. If you had discovered the Beatles through the American-issued LP, I'd totally sympathize with your nostalgia for the Frankenalbum. But, in essence, you knowingly picked a compilation and chose to call it an album. It's really not a big deal: I honestly thought you'd read my original response, nod in agreement, and move on.
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