Best Ever Albums

Re: You must listen to the album above you

LedZep — Mon, 24 Apr 2023 05:23:41 GMT

Author: LedZep

Posted: 04/24/2023 09:23

The first synth notes have already won me over. Pure pleasure (in function heh). The opener/intro track is dancing on the edges of sweet, twee-ish indie pop and the more complex baroque pop stuff. It also sounds extremely well-polished, almost sophisti pop style, which I usually dislike but it works like a charm here. It took me some time to recover from that great opener, but in the end, despite rarely reaching the same highs, the whole album's pretty good and consistently fun and catchy. Lovely production, again being almost too polished and perfect, but never crossing the line for me. The synths are extremely tasty and strangely remind me of some 70s prog sounds (perhaps it's just the Van Der Graaf album I've listened to right before this). Jenny's voice is brilliant throughout. Love this chorus:

"I spend my days here working on my concept
Tryna have a good time, turning pages
And what I found is nothing is forever
I'm getting better as I age"

My distaste for generic indie pop of the last 20 years in well documented, but I can absolutely get behind this type of interesting, yet simple sound. High 7.5/10

Let's go with a short and explosive gem from the 90s rave scene, in hopes of starting this thread again. It's just over 20 minutes, give it a go folks.

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Pt. V by Citadel Of Kaos

Re: You must listen to the album above you

mickilennial — Mon, 3 Apr 2023 12:07:28 GMT

Author: mickilennial

Posted: 04/03/2023 16:07

Tha1ChiefRocka wrote:

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Silent Dialogue by Masa Matsuda / Yuji Ohno

Listened to this yesterday, because I completely forgot about my own thread at some point and I remember this existed. Really solid late 70s Japanese jazz with some fusion elements. Three songs stood out to me: "Midspace Action", "Kumasan-sanpo", and "Lullaby". I have a friend who is a big Ohno fan so I'm sure he'll be happy I'm on the cusp of being a fan outside of hearing their music in stuff like Lupin over the years. Really solid record. I had a fun time with it.

3.5/5.0

For whoever posts next, obviously, because that's how this thread works:

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Spectra by Jenny O.

Re: You must listen to the album above you

Tha1ChiefRocka — Sat, 19 Dec 2020 14:10:54 GMT

Author: Tha1ChiefRocka

Posted: 12/19/2020 19:10

I was familiar with most of the tracks on the Basho compilation, and it's always nice to take a listen to them. He's still behind Fahey and a few others for me, but his music may be the most consistently pleasing to listen to.

How about some Jazz Fusion from Japan? Can't go wrong with that.

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Silent Dialogue by Masa Matsuda / Yuji Ohno

Re: You must listen to the album above you

Tha1ChiefRocka — Sat, 5 Dec 2020 20:41:43 GMT

Author: Tha1ChiefRocka

Posted: 12/06/2020 01:41

@ Gowi

I hadn't listened to that album in some time, but I heard a song from it a few days ago, and forgot how good it was. Glad you enjoyed it.

Re: You must listen to the album above you

LedZep — Sat, 5 Dec 2020 18:04:53 GMT

Author: LedZep

Posted: 12/05/2020 23:04

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Leaves Of Yesteryear by Green Carnation

This is like a bait for me and I love it. Much like Psychotic Waltz, Green Carnation's comeback is an album that I've had on my wishlist since it dropped, and I never found time for it, so I'm taking a break from Outkast binge now. They're a band by Terje Vik Schei (a.k.a. Tchort), a Norwegian bassist famous for playing on Emperor's In The Nightside Eclipse. While their Light Of Day, Day Of Darkness is one of my absolute favourites, the other Green Carnation album I've heard, The Acoustic Verses (from 2006, their last before hiatus), is not nearly as good. It's a very pleasant acoustic goth rock that gets progressive and folky at times, but not nearly as consistent, interesting or captivating as the doomy prog metal of their magnum opus. But I digress. Leaves For Yesteryear is a comeback that's very different from The Acoustic Verses, which in turn is very different from Light Of Day, Day Of Darkness. Quality wise, it's not anywhere near the latter, and it's better and more consistent than the former. The opening title track is a wonderfully crafted, melancholic doomy prog anthem, not as agressive as their peak work but almost equally enthralling. Sentinels is somewhat faster and more energetic, and the rest of the album keeps that good balance of tasty atmospheric doom and punchier prog sound. I think this is an excellent band to get people into this type of metal, the clean vocals and melodic elements help a lot. It'll land somewhere in the 80-100 range of the year.

Next is a fantastic Robbie Basho compilation

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Bashovia by Robbie Băsho

Re: You must listen to the album above you

LedZep — Sat, 5 Dec 2020 18:01:18 GMT

Author: LedZep

Posted: 12/05/2020 23:01

Gowi wrote:

Porto Morto by Porto Morto is definitely up my alley.

The modern progressive pop movement has a lot of these mathy moments and lovely flourishes that really grab my attention intrinsically. What a lovely sleeper hit from 2016 that I missed. I think it would be making any updated 2016 chart I do, though I’m not sure in what percentile in the list. But yeah, this is kind of the same stuff that makes me enjoy Atlanter (another progressive pop group) so much, though I think these guys might have more complex arrangements here. I have no idea what is being said here, but that's never stopped me from enjoying the musicality of a record before. Great find.

🥰

Always happy to give a shoutout to local bands, especially if they're excellent like Porto Morto. They are tight live too. My favourite show was the one last year when they had cardboard houses on heads (a song on their second album from 2019 is called A House).

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Fun, inventive band. And they don't take themselves too seriously. The members met in JeboTon Ansambl (FuckTone Ansamble, "Jeboton" is also a pun on one of the most famous record companies here, Yugoton). But that collective is a story for itself.

Here's a great live session version of Zadnji dan zime ("Last Day of Winter")

Link

Lyrics are fun and don't make a lot of sense, like I said. Here's a rough translation:

Danas je odličan dan
Zajedno smo bez brige
Odličan je, to znam
Danas ne idemo nigdje
Zaboravljaš si ime
Odličan je to dan
Zadnji dan zime

Danas je najljepši dan
Krenuli smo bez brige
Najljepše je, to znam
To što ne idemo nigdje

Danas je najljepši dan
Samo da znaš da ja znam
Danas je najljepši dan
Samo da znaš da ja znam (x3)

Oni ne znaju
Nitko ne zna!
Danas je najljepši dan
Šapni mi, ja znam
Danas je najljepši dan
Samo da znaš da ja znam
Samo da znaš da ja...

Oni ne znaju
Nitko ne zna!
Danas je najljepši dan
Samo da znaš da ja znam
Danas je najljepši dan
Samo da znaš da ja znam (x3)
--------------------------------------
Today is a great day
We're together without worries
It's great, I know
We're going nowhere today
You're forgetting your name
It's a great day
The last day of winter

Today is the best day
We've set off without worries
It's the best, I know
The fact we're going nowhere

Today is the best day
Just so you know that I know
Today is the best day
Just so you know that I know (x3)

They don't know
No one knows!
Today is the best day
Whisper to me, I know
Today is the best day
Just so you know that I know
Just so you know that I...

They don't know
No one knows!
Today is the best day
Just so you know that I know
Today is the best day
Just so you know that I know (x3)

Re: You must listen to the album above you

mickilennial — Sat, 5 Dec 2020 14:47:50 GMT

Author: mickilennial

Posted: 12/05/2020 19:47

Tha1ChiefRocka wrote:

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Got No Bread, No Milk, No Money, But We Sure Got A Lot Of Love by James Talley

Just listened to this three times in a row, so congratulations on finding an unsung classic.

Feels at times in line with other country artists of the time but with a more progressive bluegrass-like sheen. The songwriting both lyrical and musical is just out of this world with Talley’s voice being enjoyable. My first instincts told me to compare this to Jeannie C. Riley but with less pop-oriented accessibility. It’s really fantastic and on first listen I’ve rated it in the 81-90 range and I will most definitely be exploring Talley’s discography when I have the time and interest to do so. If anything is a fraction as good as this record he’ll be regarded quite highly by me. Surprised this isn’t more well-known.

Next Album:

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Leaves Of Yesteryear by Green Carnation

Re: You must listen to the album above you

RoundTheBend — Sat, 5 Dec 2020 12:04:32 GMT

Author: RoundTheBend

Posted: 12/05/2020 17:04

Now that BEA has an album below you game and an album above you game, I'm really scratching my head on how we can have an album to the left of you and to the right of you and behind you... well ok... I'll stop. 🤡 🤣

Re: You must listen to the album above you

Repo — Sat, 5 Dec 2020 04:01:31 GMT

Author: Repo

Posted: 12/05/2020 09:01

Tha1ChiefRocka wrote:

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Lifers by Local H

I'll need to add this to my 2020 chart. I can't remember why I listened to some of this earlier in the year (it might have been you Gowi) but this is a surprisingly good album for a 2nd tier 90s grunge band. Hard rocking and straight forward, but something like this is certainly needed against the polished production and overall electronic nature of much of new albums this year.

That's how I used to view them too. Not anymore. Got see them live at a drive-in concert just a couple of months ago, and they blew me and my girlfriend away. So many great albums and they've only gotten better with time. Must see live!

Gowi hooked me up with rec earlier in the year, and it will definitely be high up in my final year chart.

Re: You must listen to the album above you

Tha1ChiefRocka — Sat, 5 Dec 2020 00:28:06 GMT

Author: Tha1ChiefRocka

Posted: 12/05/2020 05:28

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Got No Bread, No Milk, No Money, But We Sure Got A Lot Of Love by James Talley

Re: You must listen to the album above you

mickilennial — Wed, 2 Dec 2020 03:19:49 GMT

Author: mickilennial

Posted: 12/02/2020 08:19

Porto Morto by Porto Morto is definitely up my alley.

The modern progressive pop movement has a lot of these mathy moments and lovely flourishes that really grab my attention intrinsically. What a lovely sleeper hit from 2016 that I missed. I think it would be making any updated 2016 chart I do, though I’m not sure in what percentile in the list. But yeah, this is kind of the same stuff that makes me enjoy Atlanter (another progressive pop group) so much, though I think these guys might have more complex arrangements here. I have no idea what is being said here, but that's never stopped me from enjoying the musicality of a record before. Great find.

Next Up:

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Lifers by Local H

Re: You must listen to the album above you

LedZep — Sat, 28 Nov 2020 12:02:37 GMT

Author: LedZep

Posted: 11/28/2020 17:02

Tha1ChiefRocka wrote:

This album is completely improvised on both sises and it was recorded by a teenager in his bedroom in the 80s. It wasn't even meant to be released, so I think that's as good as it gets. :)

Pretty fascinating stuff, good rec Chief 😁

Re: You must listen to the album above you

Tha1ChiefRocka — Sat, 28 Nov 2020 09:38:18 GMT

Author: Tha1ChiefRocka

Posted: 11/28/2020 14:38

This album is completely improvised on both sises and it was recorded by a teenager in his bedroom in the 80s. It wasn't even meant to be released, so I think that's as good as it gets. 😄

Re: You must listen to the album above you

LedZep — Sat, 28 Nov 2020 06:04:33 GMT

Author: LedZep

Posted: 11/28/2020 11:04

Wow this is excellent! Psychedelic, droney, hazy dub is exactly what I needed right now, and I didn't even know it. Not at all what I expected based on that album cover. Loads of incredible textures, sparse vocal samples that are almost drowned in psychedelic waves. Some claim it's the beginning of hypnagogic pop. I've listened to the shitty youtube version cause I couldn't find anything better, but the lofi setting was rather fitting actually. Still, is there a good version anywhere online Chief?

Here's a little piece of Croatian progressive pop/art rock/jazz rock/indietronica/whatever. The lyrics are cool, but not crucial. Mostly funny, nonsensical or metaphorical stuff, but the music is where it's at.

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Porto Morto by Porto Morto

Edit: here's bandcamp link

Re: You must listen to the album above you

Tha1ChiefRocka — Fri, 20 Nov 2020 21:33:49 GMT

Author: Tha1ChiefRocka

Posted: 11/21/2020 02:33

Been awhile since I had listened to that one, and I enjoyed it more than from what I remembered. It's got a good new agey flavor to it that has become something that I enjoy quite a bit in the last few years. I also don't remember how seemingly improvisational it feels. Especially on one of the shorter tracks like "Summer's Moon" it definitely has a feel of someone who just walked into the studio and sat down to play. Certainly the engimatic nature of the artist and the album has contributed a lot to people's like of it (which I know I'm always a sucker for too), but it's also great music in its own right. I'll start putting this on more often.

Let's take another trip down the private press/obscurity Rabbit Hole.

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Don't Worry by Eric Lou Root

Re: You must listen to the album above you

Anonymous — Tue, 17 Nov 2020 04:45:42 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 11/17/2020 09:45

Prélude Au Sommeil by Jean-Jacques Perrey
This has triggered my curiosity and I was happily suprised. This is like the creepy side of the fifties, a bit like these old TV documentary soundtracks, or TV interludes. It could have been called Prélude to Death, really (rather than to Sleep-"sommeil") .. And this album cover! Really in accord with the content.
But this is a good album! I guess today we call that ambient. It also made me think of Rock Bottom, by Robert Wyatt. I wonder what AfterHours would think of Prélude.

To stay in the mood, in a different decade:
[album title is in french, but all songs are in english, the singer is Canadian, I think]

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L'Amour by Lewis

Re: You must listen to the album above you

LedZep — Mon, 16 Nov 2020 15:30:10 GMT

Author: LedZep

Posted: 11/16/2020 20:30

I've instantly put everything aside when I saw Gowi's pick (even KMD's Black Bastards from the other game). That one has been on my to-do list since February, and somehow it kept getting buried in the queue. And I'm so glad I got the chance to play it. I've never heard of the 90s prog/US power metal band Psychotic Waltz before this comeback album. And if this is the "worst" they have to offer (judging by ratings and reviews on several sites), I'm surely gonna love the better rated albums.

I dig The God-Shaped Void, especially the combination of highly melodic riffs and choruses with the intricate, prog-inspired playing. It's like combining the best of both worlds. The addition of flutes on a few songs was cool too. Now the negatives. The songwriting is consistently good, but the album does lack some variety. It's not reinventing the wheel, and oftentimes it sounds very close to other prog bands (at times it's very reminiscent of Nevermore, The Fallen sounds like it features James LaBrie on the higher pitched vocals). I guess it could've been slightly punchier too, I wouldn't mind some faster and more aggressive songs to break the rhythm of mid-paced prog bangers. All in all, I'd definitely recommend this to anyone who likes bombastic, catchy prog. It might sneak onto my 2020 chart near the end after another listen or two. Although I have enough metal as it is.

To break the 2020 streak, here's a 50s gem:

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Prélude Au Sommeil by Jean-Jacques Perrey

Re: You must listen to the album above you

LedZep — Mon, 16 Nov 2020 14:21:07 GMT

Author: LedZep

Posted: 11/16/2020 19:21

Yeah, edit button and occasionally listening to an album someone else has already reviewed. It’s not too bad I guess. That’s assuming that we have more than 2 active participants of course 🤣

Re: You must listen to the album above you

mickilennial — Mon, 16 Nov 2020 05:27:58 GMT

Author: mickilennial

Posted: 11/16/2020 10:27

Source by Nubya Garcia was, ultimately, a good record.

The production was quite nice and I enjoyed most of the arrangements on this record, showing a vibrant canvas of melody and timbre. However, what it lacked the most for me was consistency. Songs like “Pace”, “Stand With Each Other”, and “Inner Game” feel rather disjointed and I don’t mean that in a way that is comparable to interesting free or avant-garde expressionism. They are lacking and because of their lacking they disrupt the flow of the record and for most of these songs… that’s quite awful considering they pieces stuck between the beginning and conclusion. This is a shame because songs like “Together Is a Beautiful Place to Be” deserve more than lackluster build-up and follow-through.

The record is still good despite this issue, but that’s mostly how I feel about it.

LedZep wrote:

Also a slight problem with this game is the timing. If 2 people listen to the same album and review it in roughly the same time, what happens then?

Alright, so this implies our forum is that active, but ignoring that point I would say that the edit button exists. I had to do it a few times in this thread's predecessor? My memory is foggy. Basically if the issue were to happen (assuming Repo and Chief, for example, jumped on one of my album posts) that it would quickly settle itself when whoever posted a second too late looked at the thread itself. It wouldn't be very difficult for them to course correct and then simple listen/review to the other guy's album. Edit in a "review incoming" blurb and that's that.

As for the next album on the agenda:

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The God-Shaped Void by Psychotic Waltz

Re: You must listen to the album above you

LedZep — Sun, 15 Nov 2020 12:05:09 GMT

Author: LedZep

Posted: 11/15/2020 17:05

Also a slight problem with this game is the timing. If 2 people listen to the same album and review it in roughly the same time, what happens then?