Best Ever Albums

Re: Round 1: Clipping. v. The Orb

Luigii — Mon, 26 Jul 2021 20:10:55 GMT

Author: Luigii

Posted: 07/27/2021 00:10

Aw well. While Abolition didn't get to move forward within this tournament, I'm glad that people enjoyed the album in various degrees. This is one case where while this was a round one bracket, there is something where this could have been a quarter/semi final. Though the big question would have been what would have happened if Abolition went against We Will Always Love You? I would have picked my pick and I would know Bay and Mercury would have gone with the later.

Re: Round 1: Clipping. v. The Orb

baystateoftheart — Mon, 26 Jul 2021 20:04:15 GMT

Author: baystateoftheart

Posted: 07/27/2021 00:04

Visions Of Bodies Being Burned defeats Abolition Of The Royal Familia 14-8 to advance to the sweet sixteen.

Re: Round 1: Clipping. v. The Orb

baystateoftheart — Thu, 22 Jul 2021 19:31:27 GMT

Author: baystateoftheart

Posted: 07/22/2021 23:31

I'm not a big fan of horror or horrorcore, and contrary to popular opinion I think this album is actually worse than clipping.'s previous effort. While my opinion of the album didn't rise or fall on this second listen, I found it less intense and gripping with repetition. The production is good with some touches of greatness, while the rapping is usually good but sometimes corny. Lyrically, most of the album is passable - I am rarely impressed due to not being a horror fan, and I find a couple tracks disgusting/intolerable, mainly the cannibalism one. Visions Of Bodies Being Burned is a pretty good record despite my reservations, but definitely my least favorite of round one. 3/5. Meanwhile, I was expecting to like Abolition Of The Royal Familia more than I do. It could definitely use 20+ minutes of trimming, but that's not the main problem. The vocal elements, whether sung, spoken, sampled, or computerized, detract from the music more often than not. Those that offer some sort of commentary are particularly banal, the closing track being the worst offender. Luckily, the instrumentals are quite good most of the time, and they are of course the centerpiece of anything by The Orb. The record has some clear flaws, but enough positives for a low 3.5/5 and my vote.

Re: Round 1: Clipping. v. The Orb

baystateoftheart — Thu, 22 Jul 2021 17:14:27 GMT

Author: baystateoftheart

Posted: 07/22/2021 21:14

cestuneblague wrote:

abstain because I'd only be voting on what I find less irritating (which I guess would be Orb).

Sounds like a perfectly legitimate basis to cast a vote on, assuming you listened to both. The results of these matches are supposed to reflect our collective preferences, even when neither option is appealing.

Re: Round 1: Clipping. v. The Orb

cestuneblague — Thu, 22 Jul 2021 11:10:32 GMT

Author: cestuneblague

Posted: 07/22/2021 15:10

abstain because I'd only be voting on what I find less irritating (which I guess would be Orb).

Re: Round 1: Clipping. v. The Orb

travelful — Thu, 22 Jul 2021 08:36:35 GMT

Author: travelful

Posted: 07/22/2021 12:36

Y'all know hip-hop is my favorite genre but clipping has never clicked for me. I liked their self titled debut at least but not really anything since. I know it's critically acclaimed but the whole Halloween/scary vibe is kinda cringe to me. The Orb's album is nice but not anything I go back to. I like The Orb's album more though so I'll vote for that.

Re: Round 1: Clipping. v. The Orb

guzguzgarbit — Tue, 20 Jul 2021 12:05:14 GMT

Author: guzguzgarbit

Posted: 07/20/2021 16:05

Abolition of the royal familia is great, top tier Orb album for me... But Visions Of Bodies Being Burned is even greater, it has some of the best industrial/noise instrumentals I've heard for quite some time. The collab with Esposito is especially excellent. I'm always surprised to see clipping receiving so such mainstream exposure considering what kind of music they're making.

Visions Of Bodies Being Burned for me.

Re: Round 1: Clipping. v. The Orb

Hayden — Wed, 14 Jul 2021 10:56:57 GMT

Author: Hayden

Posted: 07/14/2021 14:56

Clipping.

Not sure I enjoy either of these as much as others though.

Re: Round 1: Clipping. v. The Orb

LedZep — Wed, 14 Jul 2021 04:16:19 GMT

Author: LedZep

Posted: 07/14/2021 08:16

Why did I not listen to this Orb album earlier? It was on my radar, but just sitting in the queue the whole time. Anyways it’s absolutely exquisite, the only complaint I have is the aforementioned length of a few tracks. 77 minutes is not that long for an ambient house/dub album, but it still could’ve been slightly shorter. Apart from that, around top 30 of the year. ”GLORIOUS, GLORIOUS ENGLAND GOAL!”

That being said, my vote goes to Clipping since it’s one of the top albums I’ve heard last year. Upgraded version of their 2019 effort, several of the songs here are among my most played for 2020, and Enlacing might be song of the year for me.

Scratch that comment on Red Sun Throught Smoke vs Source. This one is the best matchup this round.

Re: Round 1: Clipping. v. The Orb

Fischman — Fri, 2 Jul 2021 15:17:27 GMT

Author: Fischman

Posted: 07/02/2021 19:17

This is one of my two major dissents for the tourney. The Clipping was straight up intolerable. I may give it another go to see if anything clicks, but I can't see voting for it against just about anything.

Re: Round 1: Clipping. v. The Orb

EyeKanFly — Fri, 2 Jul 2021 14:23:13 GMT

Author: EyeKanFly

Posted: 07/02/2021 18:23

The Orb album was solid, but as with most of their music, it gets a little boring when listening in large doses. I think if it was a little shorter I might've liked it better.

That said, it would've taken a lot to defeat the Clipping. album, that was fantastic and one of my favorite hip hop releases of 2020.

Re: Round 1: Clipping. v. The Orb

Purplepash — Fri, 2 Jul 2021 05:49:26 GMT

Author: Purplepash

Posted: 07/02/2021 09:49

Wow! I did not expect a 1993 spoken word piece by Jello Biafra to get The Orb treatment (the closing track).

Link

Abolition Of The Royal Familia served its purpose in terms of losing me in the music for a while, and I ended up enjoying it more than I thought I would, but Visions Of Bodies Being Burned was one of my top albums of 2020. Clipping. for me.

Re: Round 1: Clipping. v. The Orb

Luigii — Thu, 1 Jul 2021 17:40:26 GMT

Author: Luigii

Posted: 07/01/2021 21:40

kokkinos wrote:

Actually went back and gave it a second listen, but not much changed, still don't get it, sorry. My opinion remains that, despite liking some parts of it, it could have been more focused and as a result doesn't fully justify its length.
Then again, as you might notice by my comments on other matchups, electronic music is not exactly my cup of tea, so such an album has a tougher time maintaining my interest compared to the average listener.
Anyway, I'm glad you - and hopefully many more - enjoyed it.

Thank you for the kind words. If your ever curious for electronic music, let me know. Always around on this site.

Re: Round 1: Clipping. v. The Orb

kokkinos — Thu, 1 Jul 2021 17:32:57 GMT

Author: kokkinos

Posted: 07/01/2021 21:32

Actually went back and gave it a second listen, but not much changed, still don't get it, sorry. My opinion remains that, despite liking some parts of it, it could have been more focused and as a result doesn't fully justify its length.
Then again, as you might notice by my comments on other matchups, electronic music is not exactly my cup of tea, so such an album has a tougher time maintaining my interest compared to the average listener.
Anyway, I'm glad you - and hopefully many more - enjoyed it.

Re: Round 1: Clipping. v. The Orb

Luigii — Thu, 1 Jul 2021 15:50:34 GMT

Author: Luigii

Posted: 07/01/2021 19:50

kokkinos wrote:

I find it puzzling that Visions Of Bodies Being Burned is - according to RYM - the best hip hop album to have come out in 2020, but Abolition Of The Royal Familia is one of those albums I will never get no matter how hard I try. There are quite a few great or at least noteworthy ideas hidden in it, but they seem to endlessly drag without moving towards any particular direction.
Visions Of Bodies Being Burned gets my vote.

I don't know. While I would give a sense of understanding that some tracks could be a bit shorter. The twelve minute Weekend It Rained Forever is probably the culprit of that argument. I don't agree that these songs drag without going anywhere. Or that the destination isn't rewarding.

Re: Round 1: Clipping. v. The Orb

kokkinos — Thu, 1 Jul 2021 15:10:46 GMT

Author: kokkinos

Posted: 07/01/2021 19:10

I find it puzzling that Visions Of Bodies Being Burned is - according to RYM - the best hip hop album to have come out in 2020, but Abolition Of The Royal Familia is one of those albums I will never get no matter how hard I try. There are quite a few great or at least noteworthy ideas hidden in it, but they seem to endlessly drag without moving towards any particular direction.
Visions Of Bodies Being Burned gets my vote.

Re: Round 1: Clipping. v. The Orb

Luigii — Mon, 28 Jun 2021 19:21:06 GMT

Author: Luigii

Posted: 06/28/2021 23:21

Well, it is time to explain my pick for a bit. The Orb is one of those acts that if you only venture through there classic period of the 90's and only that, you would be missing out on some killer material. Another album from them that I would highly recommend would be there 2015 album Moonbuilding 2703 A.D. But I'm not going to talk about that album. I'm going to talk about there recent album for the time since they have a collab record out this year. But for the no spoilers for this album, while the descriptor for this is ambient house. The record doesn't stick to that for the duration of its run time. It actually dabbles into other genres. As well as having a through line with its collaborators since they have worked with some big names in those particular fields of music. Then I could say that there are cues that lead to the tail end of the album. A particular line from the second track actually foreshadows what happens on the second to last track of the album. Or how most of the album transitions from track to track. And while I still have a good chunk of The Orb's discography, I feel like this album has a globe trotting feeling to it. There are emotional highs that over throws there best work and strike an emotional chord. And sounds one of the most meticulous records for electronic music. Now even though I would give this a 100. I don't think it is a "perfect" 100. I would say a few details within the album that don't hit a complete bullseye, or how the music video for the opener for Daze quite bites and is pretty corny. But this one of those records that just has a lot of care to it and even when knowing what the journey is, I'm still enamored by it. And is so far in the running for one of the best albums for 2020 and the decade at large in the moment.

Round 1: Clipping. v. The Orb

baystateoftheart — Mon, 28 Jun 2021 18:27:19 GMT

Author: baystateoftheart

Posted: 06/28/2021 22:27

Seed #8:

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Visions Of Bodies Being Burned by Clipping.

Nominated by: DrewHamster
Genres [RYM]: Horrorcore, Industrial Hip Hop, Experimental Hip Hop

Seed #25:

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Abolition Of The Royal Familia by The Orb

Nominated by: Luigii
Genres [RYM]: Ambient House

Instructions:

If you have not already, please listen to both albums in full before voting. Share your thoughts and/or your vote in this thread. This poll will be tallied in no fewer than twenty-eight days. See Tournament Spreadsheet for the full bracket.