Best Ever Albums

Re: You have to let it grow on you....

Robert Anton Wilson — Sat, 27 Oct 2012 11:57:19 GMT

Author: Robert Anton Wilson

Posted: 10/27/2012 15:57

It really varies based on tons of things such as expectancy, time of life, crowd appeal.

I listened to Dark Side of the Moon and knew on first listen this would be my favorite album ever but when I listened to Animals by Pink Floyd I was so deceived I wondered how could they have sunked so low. Once the first impression wore out I still love the Dark Side and Animals has grown on me like crazy because in my early formative years I found special effects and synth brio to be the main thing that made me like music but as I grew I was able to understand differently the foundation of a piece of music which has gained me a different appreciation of the bass/drum framework on which a song is built and of course the genius of Roger Waters lyrics and thematic creation is self evident but the genius of David Gilmours guitar playing is -I find- more subtle and it takes more time before I realised how tight his playing is because I to develop understanding of it.

Then Katy Perry came along shooting whipped cream from a container screwed to her nipples ...

Re: You have to let it grow on you....

Mr. Shankly — Thu, 25 Oct 2012 23:11:55 GMT

Author: Mr. Shankly

Posted: 10/26/2012 03:11

revolver94 wrote:

I still haven't gotten "Astral Weeks" beyond the title track; I've probably listened to it 10 times.

I hate to keep obsessing over the age thing, but maybe it helps to be a certain age. I was 19 or 20 when I first heard that album, and it hit me like a ton of bricks. I still remember exactly where I was and what I was doing. I was hanging out at a cafe near my community college, probably skipping class, and the barista or whatever was playing a cassette of it. After about the third or fourth song, I was entranced, and I looked at her and said, "What is this?!" 😲 She let me borrow the cassette. It's been one of my favorites ever since. 😁

... but I could see how it might not appeal to everybody. 🤔

Re: You have to let it grow on you....

Anonymous — Thu, 25 Oct 2012 13:06:23 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 10/25/2012 17:06

pearljammer13 wrote:

A good example is my recent exploration of Pavement. First time through the ones I've listened to so far, I wasn't sure what to make of them but I knew I wanted to keep listening. By the 3rd time they really started to sound great and they just keep growing from there.

Yeah, Wowee Zowee took me a while to "get", and now I love it.

Re: You have to let it grow on you....

revolver94 — Thu, 25 Oct 2012 12:47:08 GMT

Author: revolver94

Posted: 10/25/2012 16:47

I used to actively dislike both the VU&N and Kid A. I thought the former sounded really dated and boring. I thought that the latter was too minimalistic and didn't even qualify as music. I'm baffled as to how I ever felt that way... but yeah.

Most music I don't actually REALLY like my first listen. Sometimes I may like the ambiance, but the music is just... music. It always takes me a while to get music.

I still haven't gotten "Astral Weeks" beyond the title track; I've probably listened to it 10 times.

"In Rainbows" was one that I knew how all of the songs went and thought I "got," but then at around listen 30 or so it came together; now it's one of my favorites (it would be in my top 20 if not for my 2 album/artist rule).

Re: You have to let it grow on you....

pearljammer13 — Wed, 24 Oct 2012 19:35:51 GMT

Author: pearljammer13

Posted: 10/24/2012 23:35

I'll listen to an album once all the way through and have one of 3 reactions. 1. I like or love it right away and will keep listening to see how my opinion develops. 2. Hate it so much that I find no redeeming quality to draw me back again. 3. Not sure about it but intrigues me enough to draw me back for more listens.

If it's a certain album that got great reviews, I'll always try at least 3 times. If by the third time I'm still not liking it, I'll give up. Typically growers start to make sense and really get enjoyable by the 3rd time. If not, I'm too impatient to keep trying.

A good example is my recent exploration of Pavement. First time through the ones I've listened to so far, I wasn't sure what to make of them but I knew I wanted to keep listening. By the 3rd time they really started to sound great and they just keep growing from there.

I'm sure this has been said already, but typically my ultimate favorite albums are growers that I don't love immediately. If I love it the first time through, it usually doesn't stand up as well with repeated listens. In rare cases it does.

Re: You have to let it grow on you....

GeevyDallas — Wed, 24 Oct 2012 14:42:09 GMT

Author: GeevyDallas

Posted: 10/24/2012 18:42

From my top 20 only Loveless and Closer took me a couple of listens to enjoy.Some took me a while to love,but I don't remember ever disliking any of the rest.Looking at my top 20,I really need to shake things up,don't have the heart to move some of the albums though.

Re: You have to let it grow on you....

btener11 — Wed, 24 Oct 2012 14:34:59 GMT

Author: btener11

Posted: 10/24/2012 18:34

a band that took time to grow on me was Drive Like Jehu. i found them a tad impenetrable at first but i was patient with them and man, was it worth it. the multi-layered guitar lines feature both traditional (almost) rhythm riffage, and lead work surrounded by a sea of noise, setting the scene for a very unique listening experience.

also, the flaming lips. they write such terrific concise and catchy tunes at times to go along with their more experimental work, that you might want to listen to them as a traditional rock/pop group. but (especially in their earlier days) they use enough noise, unique structures and tempos, and various other tasty quirks, that they refuse to be pigeon-holed, and can frustrate a more conventional, pop-oriented listener. needless to say, they were well worth the wait too.

Re: You have to let it grow on you....

junodog4 — Wed, 24 Oct 2012 13:59:53 GMT

Author: junodog4

Posted: 10/24/2012 17:59

Mr. Shankly wrote:

Lots of interesting points made in this thread. I agree with Jhereko that is does it have to with what's familiar and one's comfort zone... and Poe's comment about training the brain was interesting too, because keeper albums often do push one out of his/her comfort zone and end up revered partly for that reason. Sonic Youth's Daydream Nation was one of those for me, and it's now in my top 10. Guided by Voices' albums are always like that too. Harkan's comment about the easy availability of digital music is also interesting. It's almost overwhelming the amount one can acquire and listen to, and it can be really hard to devote the "right" amount or degree of attention to a piece of music nowadays. I hate to sound like a Grandpa Shankly, but in the old days, there weren't as many distractions, and basically there was only one way to get music, to go to the store and buy it. Since this required more of an investment in both time and money, I think people would necessarily take the time to listen to and absorb albums. Interestingly, I think the 70's was one of the biggest time periods for music buying... Really interesting topic. 😄

As for #of listens, for me it's about 5, usually. I don't have the patience beyond that anymore.

1977 was the year where record sales per capita peaked. So yes - people did by physical records more often back then. It makes for an interesting point about investment. It's much easier to check out new music today.

Re: You have to let it grow on you....

Anonymous — Wed, 24 Oct 2012 09:02:07 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 10/24/2012 13:02

something something snow. something something uphill both ways.

Re: You have to let it grow on you....

Mr. Shankly — Wed, 24 Oct 2012 00:43:23 GMT

Author: Mr. Shankly

Posted: 10/24/2012 04:43

Lots of interesting points made in this thread. I agree with Jhereko that is does it have to with what's familiar and one's comfort zone... and Poe's comment about training the brain was interesting too, because keeper albums often do push one out of his/her comfort zone and end up revered partly for that reason. Sonic Youth's Daydream Nation was one of those for me, and it's now in my top 10. Guided by Voices' albums are always like that too. Harkan's comment about the easy availability of digital music is also interesting. It's almost overwhelming the amount one can acquire and listen to, and it can be really hard to devote the "right" amount or degree of attention to a piece of music nowadays. I hate to sound like a Grandpa Shankly, but in the old days, there weren't as many distractions, and basically there was only one way to get music, to go to the store and buy it. Since this required more of an investment in both time and money, I think people would necessarily take the time to listen to and absorb albums. Interestingly, I think the 70's was one of the biggest time periods for music buying... Really interesting topic. 😄

As for #of listens, for me it's about 5, usually. I don't have the patience beyond that anymore.

Re: You have to let it grow on you....

Anonymous — Tue, 23 Oct 2012 23:54:53 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 10/24/2012 03:54

The albums in my top twenty I didn't think that much of on first listen where:

Tv on the Radio- Desperate Youth, Bloodthirsty Babes
Rain Machine- Rain Machine
Demilich- Nespithe
Saccharine Trust- Paganicons
Sigh- Hail Horror Hail

which pretty much challenges the very ideas that I put forward earlier in the thread, TVOTR, Rain Machine, and Saccharine Trust were albums from styles I was familiar with, and all are fairly pretty simple (at least on the surface) releases. The other two I loved fairly quickly by second listen and were part of my ongoing exploration of metal (and are comparatively more complex).....so essentially I'm an idiot 🤡

Re: You have to let it grow on you....

Anonymous — Tue, 23 Oct 2012 23:32:19 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 10/24/2012 03:32

^ moral of the story, I like almost nothing on first listen...

Re: You have to let it grow on you....

Anonymous — Tue, 23 Oct 2012 23:31:37 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 10/24/2012 03:31

SquishypuffDave wrote:

Analysis of my top 20, whether I loved them on my first listen. (Y/N)

Good idea! I currently have a chart of 22, and off of that the only albums I enjoyed on first listen were:

Portishead - Dummy
Kanye West - My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
Avalanches - Since I Left You
Built To Spill - Perfect From Now On

of course, this is a function of listening breadth when you first hear the album, but it's a decent way to decide whatever it is we're deciding...

Re: You have to let it grow on you....

SquishypuffDave — Tue, 23 Oct 2012 23:17:42 GMT

Author: SquishypuffDave

Posted: 10/24/2012 03:17

Analysis of my top 20, whether I loved them on my first listen. (Y/N)

1. Talk Talk - Laughing Stock (N)
2. Sufjan Stevens - Illinois (Y)
3. The Avalanches - Since I Left You (N)
4. Boards of Canada - Geogaddi (Y)
5. Godspeed You! Black Emperor - F#A#∞ (Y)
6. Scott Walker - The Drift (Y)
7. Comus - First Utterance (Y)
8. Talking Heads - Remain In Light (N)
9. Nick Drake - Pink Moon (Y)
10. The Books - The Way Out (Y)

11. Swans - Soundtracks for the Blind (Y)
12. Radiohead - In Rainbows (N)
13. Captain Beefheart - Safe as Milk (N)
14. Aphex Twin - SAWII (N)
15. Death Grips - Ex Military (Y)
16. The Flaming Lips - The Soft Bulletin (N)
17. Miles Davis - Bitches Brew (N)
18. Arvo Part - Tabula Rasa (Y)
19. Tom Waits - Swordfishtrombones (Y)
20. Neutral Milk Hotel - In The Aeroplane Over The Sea (N)

About 50/50. Most of the Ys are more recent listens than the Ns, but other than that I don't see a lot of correlation in terms of musical content.

Re: You have to let it grow on you....

jhuik — Mon, 22 Oct 2012 16:18:57 GMT

Author: jhuik

Posted: 10/22/2012 20:18

harkan wrote:

Animal Collective - MPP - first listen I had to stop halfway. Second attempt was better but still didn't like it. I have deleted it about 4 times and tried to go back to it.

A great example. My own AC-MPP story is that after about ten listens I would say I think I get it. I can really like some songs in a certain mood. But I still think this is overrated and I will never love this album the way some other people profess to love it.

Re: You have to let it grow on you....

jhuik — Mon, 22 Oct 2012 16:14:37 GMT

Author: jhuik

Posted: 10/22/2012 20:14

Jhereko wrote:

The majority of my favourite albums I was either indifferent to or borderline despised on first listen. In fact I always worry whenever I enjoy an album immensely straight away because it usually means it won't be a keeper (of course there have been exceptions).

This I absolutely agree with. If something grabs me right off the start that's so often a bad sign.

Re: You have to let it grow on you....

Anonymous — Sat, 20 Oct 2012 21:48:23 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 10/21/2012 01:48

nitro2k11 wrote:

I have tried Nearly every Radiohead album.
Downloaded Ok Computer like 10 times, got to maybe like the 4th song then i just couldnt do it.
His little whiny voice annoys the fk outta me.

THIS

Re: You have to let it grow on you....

nitro2k11 — Sat, 20 Oct 2012 21:39:33 GMT

Author: nitro2k11

Posted: 10/21/2012 01:39

I have tried Nearly every Radiohead album.
Downloaded Ok Computer like 10 times, got to maybe like the 4th song then i just couldnt do it.
His little whiny voice annoys the fk outta me.

Re: You have to let it grow on you....

videoheadcleaner — Sat, 20 Oct 2012 19:31:56 GMT

Author: videoheadcleaner

Posted: 10/20/2012 23:31

Two examples:

Foetus - Nail - first listen was painful, second was better, third was creeping under my skin. Now, after numerous listens, in my top 100.

Animal Collective - MPP - first listen I had to stop halfway. Second attempt was better but still didn't like it. I have deleted it about 4 times and tried to go back to it. About a dozen attempts to like it. It currently sits at #87 out of 91 albums from 2009. Not the worst of the year.

Usually I give an album a first listen. If it grabs me, a second. If not, a second listen may have to wait.

Digital music has ruined the way I listen to albums now. I used to buy 3 albums a week, listen on rotation for that week and then discover more later. Now I can attempt listens at several albums in a day and just chuck them in the ever-increasing digital library.

In short, 2-3 listens... (maybe I should have just said that).

Re: You have to let it grow on you....

alelsupreme — Sat, 20 Oct 2012 16:06:53 GMT

Author: alelsupreme

Posted: 10/20/2012 20:06

420BongRitsu69 wrote:

I usually give albums only about 3 listens before i deiced my opinion on it. i don't have time to try forcing myself into liking music im not into

this.