Best Folk/Singer-Songwriter/Slowcore Albums - Music Diaries

AfterHours

Gender: Male
Location: originally from scaruffi.com ;-)

craola wrote:

with all due respect, i don't think that's a solution. not only does that not address the underlying issue, but it instigates a "scratch my back" scheme to participating in threads, one that likely results in plastic discussion and empty platitudes.

do you really have 16 diaries running? perhaps it's time to start your own blog/website? t or heck, if you feel it's necessary to keep this many threads going here, maybe you should have your own forum.

It honestly doesnt matter. The system of updates itself prevents practically the entirety of the issue from ever happening as any user can make their own list rise to the top/first page at will, upon updating via the thread (like most/all do already). My solution can be applied if my updates truly prevent someone from the 1st page who recently updated, but will probably never be needed unless the amount of users and diaries suddenly doubles. I already know it is not happening and that it doesnt really need to be solved -- but it can be taken as a "just in case". Anyone who updates their thread bumps it anyway and I dont see anyone having trouble doing so -- and there has been no prevention of activity as there is no cap in the first place. My solution is particularly in the event that "too many of my lists" happen to be on the 1st page where others are being bumped off of it that have been there after, say, a reasonable length of quality time, such as a week or less -- which has probably never happened and probably never will, as I rarely update more than a few within the same few days. As you can see, the lowest entry hasnt been updated in 17 days, despite one of my occasional "flurries" of multiple updates. And I'm sure if ChiefRocka wants to comment/update, he will, thus bumping his to the top and mine/others down.
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RoundTheBend
I miss the comfort in being sad

Location: Ground Control

Personally, I like your lists in this format (meaning how you have it organized per "diary"). Also, I'd rather have an active user take up a few slots on the first page than a diary that died 5 years ago make the first page... idk... I get what you are saying Romanelli, but if he had like a bot making his diary listings take up the whole first page, then I guess that'd be annoying. The first post on the second page that is not AfterHours was 3 weeks ago.

Having said that one "realistic" solution is that you perhaps do what I did (although I did mine a bit sloppy), and have your first post (maybe mine is the second because again it had a sloppy start) be an index to a much bigger project. You can then throw links in there like a book's index. Chronology matters with this effort, so I could see that being not perfect for your needs/wants... unless someone knows how to "quickly" manage the post # so it can be re-arranged? I know there's been times I've listened to something not in the Baroque and wanted to say something about it, but decided it can wait due to this chronology issue.

Another I suppose is custom lists. You can make notes per album, re-arrange them, etc. and then reference them, having then your diary be a discussion about them...

On topic, I know this album is likely not a favorite of yours because it may only meet some of your criteria and not all of it, but this is by far my favorite album of Bob's lyrically (and musically, in a minimalist way).

Also sad but not surprised to not see Paul Simon, Donovan, Drake, Cohen, Beck... but perhaps I'm not understanding your scope of Folk/Singer-Songwriter/Slowcore. (EDIT: my ctrl F failed me in the edit post view... totally seeing Drake and Cohen now).

This has this unique mellow feel for it, even if it's a comp, that I like better curated than probably half the albums he produced during this time. It has a standout or two to sell the album (I hate that it ends with You Can Call Me Al when the rest of the album has this mellow/soulful/empty feel to it).

Negotiations And Love Songs 1971-1986 by Paul Simon

Oh and the Bob album:

The Times They Are A-Changin' by Bob Dylan

RoundTheBend
I miss the comfort in being sad

Location: Ground Control

Also I don't know if you've had a chance to check these 2017 efforts out (if singer-songwriter can stand on it's own):

Laura Marling - Semper Femina
Susanne Sundfør - Music For People In Trouble
Bedouine - Bedouine
Julie Byrne - Not Even Happiness

Probably less interested?
Please Be Mine - Molly Burch
Dark Matter - Randy Newman
Memories Are Now - Jesca Hoop

An album I think you may actually like because it is a bit less hum-ho than your typical singer-songwriter album is:

The Idler Wheel Is Wiser Than The Drive...iona Apple

AfterHours

Gender: Male
Location: originally from scaruffi.com ;-)

sethmadsen wrote:

Personally, I like your lists in this format (meaning how you have it organized per "diary"). Also, I'd rather have an active user take up a few slots on the first page than a diary that died 5 years ago make the first page... idk... I get what you are saying Romanelli, but if he had like a bot making his diary listings take up the whole first page, then I guess that'd be annoying. The first post on the second page that is not AfterHours was 3 weeks ago.

Having said that one "realistic" solution is that you perhaps do what I did (although I did mine a bit sloppy), and have your first post (maybe mine is the second because again it had a sloppy start) be an index to a much bigger project. You can then throw links in there like a book's index. Chronology matters with this effort, so I could see that being not perfect for your needs/wants... unless someone knows how to "quickly" manage the post # so it can be re-arranged? I know there's been times I've listened to something not in the Baroque and wanted to say something about it, but decided it can wait due to this chronology issue.

Another I suppose is custom lists. You can make notes per album, re-arrange them, etc. and then reference them, having then your diary be a discussion about them...

On topic, I know this album is likely not a favorite of yours because it may only meet some of your criteria and not all of it, but this is by far my favorite album of Bob's lyrically (and musically, in a minimalist way).

Also sad but not surprised to not see Paul Simon, Donovan, Drake, Cohen, Beck... but perhaps I'm not understanding your scope of Folk/Singer-Songwriter/Slowcore. (EDIT: my ctrl F failed me in the edit post view... totally seeing Drake and Cohen now).

This has this unique mellow feel for it, even if it's a comp, that I like better curated than probably half the albums he produced during this time. It has a standout or two to sell the album (I hate that it ends with You Can Call Me Al when the rest of the album has this mellow/soulful/empty feel to it).

Negotiations And Love Songs 1971-1986 by Paul Simon

Oh and the Bob album:

The Times They Are A-Changin' by Bob Dylan

Thank you, and those are some good ideas!

While it doesn't have a chance (for me) of approaching Dylan's best, "The Times..." does have some great stuff no doubt. I should revisit it as it's been far too long. Thank you for reminding me to add Simon. His best 2 entries were on the Pop list but forgot to carry them over here too.

Beck's masterpiece Odelay is on my "Greatest" list and there is perhaps a case it could be here and/or the Hip Hop etc list and/or Pop and/or Country and/or a future "Art Rock" (or something) list. I do like Sea Change, his debut and others -- just would need to revisit (though doubt any aside from Odelay would rate more than 7).

1 or 2 of Donovan will be added at some point to the 7 section (darn revisits!).

Yes, the Idler Wheel is superb! I listened to it once some time ago but it's an excellent candidate (you may notice that Tidal is already here).

As a note, the selections do not have to be an amalgam of the genres/subgenres listed in the titles -- just one of them or more.
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Last edited by AfterHours on 01/22/2019 07:18; edited 1 time in total

AfterHours

Gender: Male
Location: originally from scaruffi.com ;-)

sethmadsen wrote:

Also I don't know if you've had a chance to check these 2017 efforts out (if singer-songwriter can stand on it's own):

Laura Marling - Semper Femina
Susanne Sundfør - Music For People In Trouble
Bedouine - Bedouine
Julie Byrne - Not Even Happiness

Probably less interested?
Please Be Mine - Molly Burch
Dark Matter - Randy Newman
Memories Are Now - Jesca Hoop

An album I think you may actually like because it is a bit less hum-ho than your typical singer-songwriter album is:

The Idler Wheel Is Wiser Than The Drive...iona Apple

Whoa - I am a bit behind on the 2010s and havent heard any of these except Idler Wheel. Will have to get back to you -- thank you for the recs!
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AfterHours

Gender: Male
Location: originally from scaruffi.com ;-)

@ seth

If you're looking for a (so called) "ho hum" singer-song writer album that makes my list and gets a very high recommendation from me, check out Townes Van Zandt if you havent already, especially:

Our Mother the Mountain - Townes Van Zandt (1969)

Certainly has echoes of 2 you mention: early Dylan crossed with Cohen.

Utterly simple, but subtle, preciously beautiful and quite moving, even devastating. A real time stopper.
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RoundTheBend
I miss the comfort in being sad

Location: Ground Control

Townes Van Zandt is a total blind spot for me, thanks for the reminder to check him out.

Here's an album with slowcore as a descriptor from RYM that I really like. Mostly because of the vocal performance, but the arrangements are becoming as well. Currently going through my chart and adding such nonsense descriptions to the albums there. It doesn't change my opinion of them rather is making more conscious of stuff. What I'm finding is what I knew all along... I really don't care for genre... I care for art. My formative years do allow for a healthy lean in the original meaning of alternative rock, but that's really the only genre similarity I'm seeing.

The Trinity Session by Cowboy Junkies

AfterHours

Gender: Male
Location: originally from scaruffi.com ;-)

sethmadsen wrote:

Townes Van Zandt is a total blind spot for me, thanks for the reminder to check him out.

Here's an album with slowcore as a descriptor from RYM that I really like. Mostly because of the vocal performance, but the arrangements are becoming as well. Currently going through my chart and adding such nonsense descriptions to the albums there. It doesn't change my opinion of them rather is making more conscious of stuff. What I'm finding is what I knew all along... I really don't care for genre... I care for art. My formative years do allow for a healthy lean in the original meaning of alternative rock, but that's really the only genre similarity I'm seeing.

The Trinity Session by Cowboy Junkies

Thank you, I too give no consideration to genre in my ratings except as a framework to "what" the album is doing. But the rating itself is all about expression, how impacfully/compellingly done (as generally described on my criteria page of course).

Though further incarnations of slowcore were more powerful than the basic framework laid by the Junkies, that is probably their best work, and if any were to be added, it has the best shot!

Looking forward to what you end up thinking of Van Zandt's masterpiece.
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AfterHours

Gender: Male
Location: originally from scaruffi.com ;-)

Most recent updates in bold/bold + italics (on the list itself -- first post, first page)...

Most of the ratings changes are detailed below...

FAMILIAR ROCK/JAZZ ALBUMS - RE-RATED:
I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight - Richard & Linda Thompson (1974) 7.3/10 to 7.4/10
Illinois - Sufjan Stevens (2005) 7.3/10 to 7.4/10
Our Mother the Mountain - Townes Van Zandt (1969) Not Rated to 7.3/10
Moon Pix - Cat Power (1997) Not Rated to 7.2/10
The Idler Wheel Is Wiser Than the Driver of the Screw and Whipping Cords Will Serve You More Than Ropes Will Ever Do - Fiona Apple (2012) Not Rated to 7.1/10
Tigerlily - Natalie Merchant (1995) Not Rated to 7.0/10
Ocean Beach - Red House Painters (1995) Not Rated to 6.9/10
The Trinity Sessions - Cowboy Junkies (1986) Not Rated to 6.8/10

NEWLY ASSIMILATED ROCK/JAZZ ALBUMS - RATED:
The Twain Shall Meet - Eric Burdon (1968) 7.5/10
Hard Again - Scott Tuma (2008) 7.4/10
Old No. 1 - Guy Clark (1975) 7.1/10
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AfterHours

Gender: Male
Location: originally from scaruffi.com ;-)

Most recent updates... (in bold/bold + italics, first post, first page)

Ratings changes as follows:

FAMILIAR ROCK/JAZZ ALBUMS - RE-RATED:
Frank's Wild Years - Tom Waits (1987) Not Rated to 7.5/10
Solid Air - John Martyn (1973) Not Rated to 7.4/10
David Thomas Broughton vs. 7 Hertz - David Thomas Broughton (2007) 7.4/10; 7.4/10 to 7.3/10
Harvest - Neil Young (1972) 7.0/10 to 7.2/10
In The Falling Dark - Bruce Cockburn (1976) Not Rated to 7.2/10
Things We Lost in the Fire - Low (2001) Not Rated to 7.1/10
The Drift - Scott Walker (2006) Not Rated to 7.1/10
Fred Neil - Fred Neil (1967) Not Rated to 7.0/10
Andrew Bird & The Mysterious Production of Eggs - Andrew Bird (2005) Not Rated to 7.0/10
The End - Nico (1974) Not Rated to 7.0/10
Old No. 1 - Guy Clark (1975) 7.1/10 to 7.0/10
22, A Million - Bon Iver (2016) Not Rated to 7.0/10
Younger Than Yesterday - The Byrds (1967) Not Rated to 7.0/10
Bryter Layter - Nick Drake (1970) Not Rated to 6.9/10
Red Headed Stranger - Willie Nelson (1975) Not Rated to 6.9/10
Pontiac - Lyle Lovett (1988) Not Rated to 6.8/10
The Notorious Byrd Brothers - The Byrds (1968) Not Rated to 6.8/10
Flyin' Shoes - Townes Van Zandt (1978) Not Rated to 6.8/10
Solace - Sarah McLachlan (1991) Not Rated to 6.8/10
End of Amnesia - M. Ward (2001) Not Rated to 6.8/10
Mr. Tambourine Man - The Byrds (1965) 6.5/10 to 6.8/10
Satellite Sky - Mark Heard (1992) Not Rated to 6.9/10; 6.9/10 to 6.3/10

NEWLY ASSIMILATED ROCK/JAZZ ALBUMS - RATED:
Blacklisted - Neko Case (2002) 7.0/10
Noble Beast - Andrew Bird (2009) 7.0/10
Gravity - Alejandro Escovedo (1992) 6.8/10
Days in the Wake - Palace Brothers (1994) 6.8/10
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