Listed below are the overall rankings for the best albums in history as determined by their aggregate positions in over 59,000 different greatest album charts on BestEverAlbums.com! (Chart last updated: 1 hour ago).
"Exemplifies, more than any other XTC album, why I sometimes describe them as the band the Beatles would have been if they'd had to challenge themselves to expand the range of pop music beyond the range already established, before them, by the Beatles. Dense, layered, fussy, but exuberant songs as...""Exemplifies, more than any other XTC album, why I sometimes describe them as the band the Beatles would have been if they'd had to challenge themselves to expand the range of pop music beyond the range already established, before them, by the Beatles. Dense, layered, fussy, but exuberant songs as spiky and nerd-punk as "No Thugs in Our House", as whimsically twerpy as "Down in the Cockpit", as African and anthemic as "Melt the Guns", as prettily angular as "All of a Sudden", as gently haunting as "Runaway", as warped, subtle, and medieval as "Senses Working Overtime", and, when the chorus hits, as overflowing with perfect joy as "Senses Working Overtime"."[+]Reply
"Laurie Anderson is not just a musician, but also a performance artist. Now, while I have no trouble defending the music on Big Science, I am well aware that it was originally presented (and arguably is meant to be presented) as a full performance piece, with the music only being a portion. Just t...""Laurie Anderson is not just a musician, but also a performance artist. Now, while I have no trouble defending the music on Big Science, I am well aware that it was originally presented (and arguably is meant to be presented) as a full performance piece, with the music only being a portion. Just to clarify, Big Science makes it onto my list purely by the merit of its music, and not any performance art with which it is associated. Now as for the music in question, holy shit. I mean like seriously. Minimalist and monochrome sure, and with a shit-ton of spoken word samples, but emotionally evocative and deeply unsettling in equal proportion as well. Laurie Anderson, with the hi-tech tools at her disposal, can engender the height of emotional response from the listener with the fewest possible compositional pieces by arranging them in a way that is "perfect", by the merit of it feeling slightly off-kilter, just enough so that even the most non-musical pieces become memorable"[+]Reply
"It is all about the music. In this case there are no clever lyrics to distract. For me it works grand, just to sing along and feel good. The Police were a really good band. This is actually my favourite."Reply
"Is it just me or are SK super underrated on BEA? Really surprised to see The Woods is not even top 20 (or even top 30) for 2005. Eaaasily top 5 for me."Reply
"This is a very solid record in terms of music. 10 solid songs, with good melodies, and interesting instrumentation. The problem lies in the lack of stand out material. Everything here is very simple, and in many ways very 50s. Tracks like Crazy Little Thing Called Love, Save Me, Play the Game, ar...""This is a very solid record in terms of music. 10 solid songs, with good melodies, and interesting instrumentation. The problem lies in the lack of stand out material. Everything here is very simple, and in many ways very 50s. Tracks like Crazy Little Thing Called Love, Save Me, Play the Game, are all nice sounding tracks, but they don't really have anywhere exciting to go. Nonetheless, this is a consistently pleasant listen, with 10 good songs, possibly a few great ones in there too. ***Definitely in terms of Queen's older sound, Dragon Attack comes closest with it's awesome bassline and cool middle eight."[+]Reply
"I remember hearing Cloud Nothings for the first time on a compilation a couple years ago. I thought they were boring, and wrote them off as blog hype. The only reason that I picked up Attack on Memory was because I had heard that the album made use of post-hardcore influences, which is a personal...""I remember hearing Cloud Nothings for the first time on a compilation a couple years ago. I thought they were boring, and wrote them off as blog hype. The only reason that I picked up Attack on Memory was because I had heard that the album made use of post-hardcore influences, which is a personal love of mine.
The post-hardcore influences are definitely present. My question was whether they’d be more akin to the post-hardcore of old or new. The album definitely pays tribute to Youth of America on a few songs. The album’s second track, “Wasted Days”, is an excellent example, calling to mind some of Wipers’ longer tracks with its verse-riffforever-verse structure. The use of a constant rhythm with sparse guitar soloing over the top gives it a classic art punk feel which fans of the genre are sure to appreciate.
Right after that nearly nine-minute jam, we’re treated to what’s essentially a pop song, as Cloud Nothings get back into what they were originally known for. It gives you a sense of what the album is about, a sort of yin and yang style. The album panders between hardcore and pop, between its abrasive vocals and long instrumental sections, between the decade-old influences that it wears on its sleeve and the modern music scene which rarely sees music like this.
Albums like this that are so obvious in what they borrow from other bands are often very polarizing. Sometimes it works out great, like The Black Keys’ albums, firmly grounded in the blues but bringing that extra something to the table that puts them over the top. Most of the time, it doesn’t. Attack on Memory is a difficult album to put into either camp. It very much feels like an inferior Youth of America, and it’s similar enough that the comparison has to be made, which really hurts it. At the same time however, it’s a fun album with solid instrumentation, and the fun that comes with the album makes it feel like more of an ode to those albums than a poor copy. Cloud Nothings have made a good album as they explore more styles of music. They don’t seem to have found a style that’s truly their own just yet, but they’re a band to keep an eye on."[+]Reply
"This is definitely my favorite Kate Bush album, so I was surprised to find it so low. The words “too effiminate” for a moment made me lose all faith in humankind; will there ever be a day where feminine will not mean childish or dumb or... you know the drill. And the dislikes are nice, but I see ...""This is definitely my favorite Kate Bush album, so I was surprised to find it so low. The words “too effiminate” for a moment made me lose all faith in humankind; will there ever be a day where feminine will not mean childish or dumb or... you know the drill. And the dislikes are nice, but I see everyone saying the same thing with their ratings and charts.
But still, I don’t really get why this one is so low; it’s certainly not more feminine than her last two albums. The reason for the albums that followed to be liked by people on this site seems clear, since people here seem to have an indie fetish, and Kate apparently became more and more independent in the course of the ‘80s. I feel like this album is a bit in the middle of that process, which is why I like it so much: the production isn’t as sparse as on the following two albums and the vocals aren’t as clean as on the preceding two albums. This is Kate Bush at her weirdest and at her Kate Bush-est."[+]Reply
"When Richard Thompson released this album, his first with his wife Linda, he had already a relatively long recording career behind him. As a founder member of Fairport Convention he was the group on their first five albums. His characteristic guitarplaying style can also be heard on Sandy Denny's...""When Richard Thompson released this album, his first with his wife Linda, he had already a relatively long recording career behind him. As a founder member of Fairport Convention he was the group on their first five albums. His characteristic guitarplaying style can also be heard on Sandy Denny's early solo albums and he had released his own soloalbum "Henry the Human Fly" in 1972.
During his time with Fairport Convention Thompson matured a lot as a songwriter and many of the band's early favourites were either written or co-written by Thompson. His inspiration by traditional British music also became still more clear. Many of the songs on "Henry" and "I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight" actually sound like they were traditional folk-songs.
His collaboration with Linda lasted for 8 years and resulted in 6 great albums. This their first is often regarded as the strongest with Richard's songwriting extraordinary inspired and varied, and his distictive voice blends beautifully with Linda's on these great songs.
The terrific opener "When I Get to the Border", sung by Richard, is catchy with optimistic lyrics. A little unsual for Thompson, whose lyrics often are dark and sad. Equally catchy ( and optimistic ) is the title track which deserved to be hit beautifully sung by Linda. Heartbreakingly beautiful is also the sad ballad "Withered and Died", sung by Linda in way that makes you think of her friend Sandy Denny.
The dark side of Richard's songwriting become apprent on songs like "Down Where the Drunkards Roll", "Has He Got a Friend For Me" and especially "The End of the Rainbow" . Even the catchy "We'll Sing Hallelujah" has some pretty dismal lyrics. The budget for this album was supposedly very limited, but it does show anywhere. Great arrangements, crisp sound and best of all strong songwriting and palying from first track till the closer "The Great Valerio".
The bonus-tracks found on some versions are three 1975 live-recordings - nice to have but some may find that they disturb the very consistent feel of the original album, which I won't hesitate to call a masterpiece. "[+]Reply