Best Ever Albums

Re: (Closed) 2015-2019 Round 4: The Chats vs Danny Brown

babyBlueSedan — Tue, 3 Nov 2020 23:17:47 GMT

Author: babyBlueSedan

Posted: 11/04/2020 04:17

The Chats go on smoko

Danny wins 16-8

Re: (Closed) 2015-2019 Round 4: The Chats vs Danny Brown

RoundTheBend — Tue, 3 Nov 2020 21:33:31 GMT

Author: RoundTheBend

Posted: 11/04/2020 02:33

I agree with Gowi that that might be a fun way to organize it, even if this isn't a bad one.

I also can't count to 10.

Re: (Closed) 2015-2019 Round 4: The Chats vs Danny Brown

cestuneblague — Sun, 1 Nov 2020 16:09:19 GMT

Author: cestuneblague

Posted: 11/01/2020 21:09

Skinny wrote:

In fairness, there wasn't a huge amount I loved from the outset. People tended to nominate a lot of huge, sweeping, mid-paced, pseudo-majestic ballads which I just couldn't get into, regardless of their respective strengths, and not much of the field played particularly to my tastes. There wasn't lots that I actively disliked, but also relatively little that really grabbed my attention. Maybe one of the reasons that 'Smoko' stood out is that is was deliberately fun, whereas lots of nominations felt decidedly self-serious. I think there is probably something to be said about the increased democratisation of pop music and the fact that there is now so much to choose from that we don't have as many shared experiences of the same songs or artists. The last five years, for me, involved listening to a lot of playful, stubbornly region-specific rap music, yet the two hip-hop songs that made it to the last eight are conspicuous by their respectability amongst mainstream, indie rock focused publications. On another note, I really like 'True Love Waits', but it's telling that 'Idioteque' - a much better, more inspired song by almost every conceivable metric - was in the last eight of our 2000s tournament. Similarly, we have a much less memorable Grimes song than 'Oblivion' in the last eight. To me, this shows the relative weakness of this last eight compared to the previous tournaments: we're voting for the same artists, but making do with their second- or third-tier material. (It didn't fit the narrative, because he didn't appear in the previous tournaments, but 'Lazarus' isn't even a Top 50 Bowie song; however, even though it wouldn't have been my pick, I can at least see the logic of Kendrick Lamar, a decade-defining artist, having one of his most urgent songs make it this far.) Cate Le Bon and Purple Mountains and Guerilla Toss and YG and Carly Rae Jepsen and Majical Cloudz and Charli XCX, to name a few, all had super distinctive, instantly recognisable, genuinely catchy songs in this tournament, that for whatever reason fell at earlier hurdles to weaker songs. Agusa at least felt different, but similar wide-eyed oddysseys from Roy of the Ravers, Jenny Hval, Jefre Cantu-Ledesma, and Richard Dawson felt at least as deserving of a spot here if we were gonna have something of its ilk make it this far (and I really like Agusa - theirs is the second-best song left). I dunno, I just felt that, increasingly throughout the tournament, my taste in music was at complete odds with other users, which is obviously fine, but has left us with what I feel is a forgettable, totally underwhelming last eight. Or maybe I just woke up on the wrong side of the bed.

Hmm... are we... Not Like Other Girls today ( 😜 I keed, <3 u Skinny)

But no, while I do think there are a couple other exceptional songs left in this tourney, Ain't it Funny is by far the best song left in this tournament and easily my favorite to win it all, absolute beast of a number pulled off perfectly in every concievable way. Also do agree this tournament more so than the rest I've been especially perplexed by some of the earlier losers, but admittely have been less invested this time around 🤔 should remedy that.

Re: (Closed) 2015-2019 Round 4: The Chats vs Danny Brown

baystateoftheart — Sat, 31 Oct 2020 20:04:50 GMT

Author: baystateoftheart

Posted: 11/01/2020 00:04

Ain't It Funny. I hope Danny is doing okay this year.

Re: (Closed) 2015-2019 Round 4: The Chats vs Danny Brown

Norman Bates — Sat, 31 Oct 2020 18:37:44 GMT

Author: Norman Bates

Posted: 10/31/2020 22:37

Ain't It Funny, one of the very best songs of the past decade. How can anyone rap on that kind of beat is amazing enough to baffle me, but the way Brown does it... Fantastic.

Re: (Closed) 2015-2019 Round 4: The Chats vs Danny Brown

LedZep — Sat, 31 Oct 2020 17:42:16 GMT

Author: LedZep

Posted: 10/31/2020 21:42

Gowi wrote:

I'd like to experiment with this once I have a better feeling for it and how we'd seed it. Maybe a best of 2000s would be viable to test this system with. IDK.

I'm definitely for testing that, if it's okay with you to host. Maybe not 2000s though, we've done that one recently.

Re: (Closed) 2015-2019 Round 4: The Chats vs Danny Brown

mickilennial — Sat, 31 Oct 2020 17:34:01 GMT

Author: mickilennial

Posted: 10/31/2020 21:34

LedZep wrote:

:lol:
Reminds me of when I failed an exam way back on the first year cause I counted 10 numbers in (0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10) list...

I like this one, especially the sudden death part (an idea which I've already mentioned before), but it'd be one hell of a tournament. Like, it'd take a whole year to do 10 mini-tourneys + the finals, and my main problem with this format we now have is that it all lasts too long. That being said, I'd participate no matter what.

I don't think it'd take a whole year. Based on my estimations we could, depending on the amount of entries, do each year in less than two months. I mean ideally we'd be judging songs on a much shorter window. We don't need 1-2 weeks to digest which song we like better than another. Maybe 1-3 days would be the cut-off for discussions/votes? It's an idea.

I'd like to experiment with this once I have a better feeling for it and how we'd seed it. Maybe a best of 2000s would be viable to test this system with. IDK.

Re: (Closed) 2015-2019 Round 4: The Chats vs Danny Brown

LedZep — Sat, 31 Oct 2020 17:31:02 GMT

Author: LedZep

Posted: 10/31/2020 21:31

Gowi wrote:

Hayden wrote:

Gowi, mate— that's 10.

I am not good at math.

🤣
Reminds me of when I failed an exam way back on the first year cause I counted 10 numbers in (0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10) list...

Gowi wrote:

I think the way I would do it is:

10 best of tournaments (2010-2019), one victor each
a multiple choice sudden death round with all 10 finalists
optionally: a finals with the two highest voted songs going head-to-head after the semi-finals sudden death

The logistics would be it'd take us awhile to go through 2010-2019 (depending on entries) to get to the semi-finals sudden death.

I like this one, especially the sudden death part (an idea which I've already mentioned before), but it'd be one hell of a tournament. Like, it'd take a whole year to do 10 mini-tourneys + the finals, and my main problem with this format we now have is that it all lasts too long. That being said, I'd participate no matter what.

Re: (Closed) 2015-2019 Round 4: The Chats vs Danny Brown

mickilennial — Sat, 31 Oct 2020 17:04:11 GMT

Author: mickilennial

Posted: 10/31/2020 21:04

Hayden wrote:

Gowi, mate— that's 10.

I am not good at math.

Re: (Closed) 2015-2019 Round 4: The Chats vs Danny Brown

Hayden — Sat, 31 Oct 2020 17:00:11 GMT

Author: Hayden

Posted: 10/31/2020 21:00

Gowi wrote:

2020 is counted as part of the 2020s not the 2010s in terms of music eras/periods. I think. I've never counted 2000 as part of the 90s, etc.

I think the way I would do it is:

9 best of tournaments (2010-2019), one victor each
a multiple choice sudden death round with all 9 finalists
optionally: a finals with the two highest voted songs going head-to-head after the semi-finals sudden death

The logistics would be it'd take us awhile to go through 2010-2019 (depending on entries) to get to the semi-finals sudden death.

Gowi, mate— that's 10.

Re: (Closed) 2015-2019 Round 4: The Chats vs Danny Brown

mickilennial — Sat, 31 Oct 2020 16:58:38 GMT

Author: mickilennial

Posted: 10/31/2020 20:58

LedZep wrote:

It is an even number though... Use your fingers to count, that's why we have base 10 system 🤣

2020 is counted as part of the 2020s not the 2010s in terms of music eras/periods. I think. I've never counted 2000 as part of the 90s, etc.

I think the way I would do it is:

9 10 best of tournaments (2010-2019), one victor each
a multiple choice sudden death round with all finalists
optionally: a finals with the two highest voted songs going head-to-head after the semi-finals sudden death

The logistics would be it'd take us awhile to go through 2010-2019 (depending on entries) to get to the semi-finals sudden death.

Re: (Closed) 2015-2019 Round 4: The Chats vs Danny Brown

LedZep — Sat, 31 Oct 2020 16:54:21 GMT

Author: LedZep

Posted: 10/31/2020 20:54

Gowi wrote:

I feel like the way this tournament was designed--best single song of the 2010s--that we should have formulated the tournament differently. Gone year by year and then had the 9 finalists go head-to-head in the end (somehow, I know its not an even number so that's iffy).

It is an even number though... Use your fingers to count, that's why we have base 10 system 🤣

NewsFromHome wrote:

Yeahhhh not to harp on a point but looking at other recent top 8s from the bracket Led Zep posted that 2010-2014 bracket is clearly better. There's at least five, maybe six songs worth being there where as here I feel like there's two. Most of the best tracks in this tourney were taken out by round 1 (sometimes even the preliminary round)

Fair enough. I don't feel that way though, everything except True Love Waits and that Agusa track (which is good, but not exactly a half-decade fav) belongs here. Which 2 songs do you think are "worthy"? Lazarus and Ain't It Funny?

Re: (Closed) 2015-2019 Round 4: The Chats vs Danny Brown

mickilennial — Sat, 31 Oct 2020 14:55:06 GMT

Author: mickilennial

Posted: 10/31/2020 18:55

I feel like the way this tournament was designed--best single song of the 2010s--that we should have formulated the tournament differently. Gone year by year and then had the 9 finalists go head-to-head in the end (somehow, I know its not an even number so that's iffy).

Re: (Closed) 2015-2019 Round 4: The Chats vs Danny Brown

Anonymous — Sat, 31 Oct 2020 14:43:21 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 10/31/2020 18:43

Yeahhhh not to harp on a point but looking at other recent top 8s from the bracket Led Zep posted that 2010-2014 bracket is clearly better. There's at least five, maybe six songs worth being there where as here I feel like there's two. Most of the best tracks in this tourney were taken out by round 1 (sometimes even the preliminary round)

Re: (Closed) 2015-2019 Round 4: The Chats vs Danny Brown

Skinny — Sat, 31 Oct 2020 10:31:49 GMT

Author: Skinny

Posted: 10/31/2020 14:31

19loveless91 wrote:

Actually agree with this, not so much with the rest. I'd prefer Purple Mountains and Roy winning in the previous round, and I'd pick differently for Radiohead/Tyler/Grimes but what's left is mostly still fine. Although I'm really getting tired of Smoko at this point.

Re: (Closed) 2015-2019 Round 4: The Chats vs Danny Brown

19loveless91 — Sat, 31 Oct 2020 09:38:46 GMT

Author: 19loveless91

Posted: 10/31/2020 13:38

Skinny wrote:

'Ain't It Funny' is the best song left in this tournament by a laughable distance.

Re: (Closed) 2015-2019 Round 4: The Chats vs Danny Brown

LedZep — Sat, 31 Oct 2020 08:19:48 GMT

Author: LedZep

Posted: 10/31/2020 12:19

Skinny wrote:

'Ain't It Funny' is the best song left in this tournament by a laughable distance. Everything else is either ambitious but flawed (Kendrick; Bowie), or otherwise simply somewhat low-stakes (The Chats; Agusa; Radiohead) or forgettable (Tyler; Grimes).

Strongly disagree, I think it's a pretty great top 8. In fact, it might be the best top 8 of all the most recent tourneys we've had.

Edit: I got curious, here's all the recent decade tourneys

2010-2014:
Sun Kil Moon carissa (Ledzep)
Lana Del Rey video games (revolver94)

Freddie Gibbs/Madlib thuggin' (Skinny)
Joanna Newsom good intentions paving company (Saltfish)

Parquet Courts stoned and starving (JimmyDread)
Azaelia Banks 212 (Norman Bates)

Grimes oblivion (Tilly)
LCD Soundsystem dance yrself clean (Exist-en-Ciel)

2000s:
Radiohead idioteque (Hayden)
Juana Molina un dia (Tilly)

Broken Social Scene anthems for a seventeen year old girl (Hayden)
Portishead the rip (Meccalecca)

Animal Collective in the flowers (JoyofDivision)
Outkast b.o.b (Hayden)

The Yeah Yeah Yeahs maps (Revolver94)
Broadcast come on let's go (Tilly)

This one:
Agusa - Landet Längesen
David Bowie - Lazarus

Kendrick Lamar - The Blacker the Berry
Radiohead - True Love Waits

Tyler, The Creator - GONE, GONE / THANK YOU
Grimes - Flesh Without Blood

The Chats - Smoko
Danny Brown - Ain't It Funny

That 2010-2014 was a brutal top 8, this one is just as good, and I don't care much for 2000s top 8.

Re: (Closed) 2015-2019 Round 4: The Chats vs Danny Brown

Skinny — Sat, 31 Oct 2020 06:55:45 GMT

Author: Skinny

Posted: 10/31/2020 10:55

'Ain't It Funny' is the best song left in this tournament by a laughable distance. Everything else is either ambitious but flawed (Kendrick; Bowie), or otherwise simply somewhat low-stakes (The Chats; Agusa; Radiohead) or forgettable (Tyler; Grimes). Danny Brown, here as almost always, manages to bring a perspective, a sound, and a performance which is uniquely and distinctly his own, whilst still putting together a song that's memorable and accessible without resorting to trend or cliché. Despite its ostensibly heavy subject matter, it never feels like a chore to listen to; in fact, it has a madcap energy that keeps it feeling fun, even in the face of its paranoid claustrophobia. Brown has been able throughout his career to take familiar hip-hop elements and bend them to his will, so that they feel new and exciting but still in conversation with his forebears (in this case the likes of Mobb Deep, Three 6 Mafia, E-40, Outkast), proving himself to be an artist with a deep understanding of what makes great rap music and a desire to push past all of that in ways that feel at once entirely natural and yet openly ambitious. He takes sonic risks, seeks out forward-thinking and sometimes dissonant production, but those choices are never for gimmick or shock value, rather finding the correct energy and vibe to work in service of his songs, of which 'Ain't It Funny' is one of the very best. It is the best song left in this tournament by a laughable distance.

Re: (Closed) 2015-2019 Round 4: The Chats vs Danny Brown

LedZep — Sat, 31 Oct 2020 06:31:13 GMT

Author: LedZep

Posted: 10/31/2020 10:31

Everything Purple said, except that I truly don’t know which way to vote here. This is worthy of the finals.

Re: (Closed) 2015-2019 Round 4: The Chats vs Danny Brown

Purplepash — Sat, 31 Oct 2020 02:35:44 GMT

Author: Purplepash

Posted: 10/31/2020 06:35

I'm amazed at how well Smoko has done but it's surprising run might end now. Even I was close to vote for Danny here. Great matchup, two excellent songs.