Hidden Tracks

[Precedent]

I'm listening to The Wombats' sophomore album and they have a 30 second hidden track at the end, but for what purpose?

Some albums play this off well, but most just seem to fail.

What are your views on hidden tracks?

[benpaco]

Depends on the album. The best, for me at least, is Blue October's "It's Just Me" at the end of Foiled. Very bittersweet song serving almost as an epilogue. The silence in between is like time's passing. That one works.
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. . . 2016 . . . 2015 . . .

Things I Make

[rayword45]

If there's a hidden track, I hope that bands pull it off like Trent Reznor and use multiple silent tracks instead putting the hidden track on the same track as the final song. It's obnoxious to see such a waste of space when on my phone, and it's especially bad if the hidden track is garbage (Most blatant example: Purgatory Dance Party by Polkadot Cadaver)

Good usage of hidden tracks (in my opinion):

Bite Me - Off The Deep End - Weird Al Yankovic (This one is freaking hilarious)
I'm Dancing In The Show Tonight (Reprise) - The Mollusk - Ween (Not really that hidden, but it works incredibly well, the atmospheric noises enhance the end of the album so much)
Endless Nameless - Nevermind - Nirvana (May as well mention this even though most copies don't even have the song. It works as a refuge in noise/sludge after all the poppy songs.)

Good hidden tracks that didn't need to be

Diamond Bollocks - Mutations - Beck
Spy - Disco Volante - Mr. Bungle (Although the gimmick was GREAT, this song was way too normal to be the secret song)

[kramerfan86]

Im fine when you are talking a small game, less than 30-60 seconds. Once you get beyond that its just annoying. No one wants to have to sit around and listen to silence for 3 minutes before they get the last song. Its exceptionally bad if you do a lot of in the car listening like I do IMO.
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[bg62096]

Life is for Living by Coldplay, played at the end of Parachutes (album). Its included in the song Everything's Not Lost.

[Cymro2011]

I usually hate hidden tracks but funnily enough one of my favourite albums ends with a 8ish minute track, a huge silence and then a 4ish minute acoustic track. That stretches out the final track to be 18 mins long.

[Kiki]

Hidden tracks are immoral. They're like having an encore when half the crowd are outside hailing taxis.

[Cymro2011]

[nutso42]

Reflektor by Arcade Fire and Peace Sword by the Flaming Lips both had amazing hidden tracks this year.

[MrFrogger]