The Ascension
by Glenn Branca

The Ascension by Glenn Branca
Year: 1981
Release date: 1981-11-00
Overall rank: 1,136th   Overall chart history
Average Rating: 
79/100 (from 216 votes)
  Ratings distribution   Average rating history
Accolades:
Award Top 20 albums of 1981 (15th)
Award Top albums of the 1980s (175th)
Award Best albums of all time (1,136th)

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Glenn Branca – The Ascension - Remastered - 2003 - CD
Condition: Very Good


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Glenn Branca The Ascension (Vinyl) 12" Album
Condition: New


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Glenn Branca "The Ascension"
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Glenn Branca bestography

The Ascension is ranked as the best album by Glenn Branca.

Glenn Branca album bestography « Higher ranked
-
This album (1,136th)
The Ascension
Lower ranked (12,720th) »
The Third Ascension

(N.B. Bestographies include all albums by an artist (and their variations), but do not include albums ranked outside the top 100,000).

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The Ascension track list

  Track ratings The tracks on this album have an average rating of 81 out of 100 (all tracks have been rated).

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The Ascension rankings

Rankings summary
Overall rank: 1,136th | 1980s rank: 175th | 1981 rank: 15th

The Ascension collection

The Ascension ratings

Average Rating: 
79/100 (from 216 votes)
  Ratings distribution Help Average Rating = (n ÷ (n + m)) × av + (m ÷ (n + m)) × AV
where:
av = trimmed mean average rating an item has currently received.
n = number of ratings an item has currently received.
m = minimum number of ratings required for an item to appear in a 'top-rated' chart (currently 10).
AV = the site mean average rating.

Showing latest 5 ratings for this album.  | Show all 216 ratings for this album.

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RatingDate updatedMemberAlbum ratingsAvg. album rating
 
95/100
 
06/05/2026 18:33 pago82  Ratings distribution  3,20571/100
 
100/100
 
05/20/2026 23:45 thepardunk  Ratings distribution  2,58669/100
 
80/100
 
05/11/2026 14:37 VictorVale  Ratings distribution  3,82481/100
 
80/100
 
03/04/2026 20:33 Hyggevinyl  Ratings distribution  4,39872/100
 
70/100
 
01/20/2026 23:26 Untitled  Ratings distribution  1,71677/100

Rating metrics: Help Outliers can be removed when calculating a mean average to dampen the effects of ratings outside the normal distribution. This figure is provided as the trimmed mean. A high standard deviation can be legitimate, but can sometimes indicate 'gaming' is occurring. Consider a simplified example* of an item receiving ratings of 100, 50, & 0. The mean average rating would be 50. However, ratings of 55, 50 & 45 could also result in the same average. The second average might be more trusted because there is more consensus around a particular rating (a lower deviation).
(*In practice, some albums can have several thousand ratings)

This album is rated in the top 2% of all albums on BestEverAlbums.com. This album has a Bayesian average rating of 78.9/100, a mean average of 77.4/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 79.2/100. The standard deviation for this album is 18.8.

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The Ascension comments

Showing latest 10 comments | Show all 14 comments |
Most Helpful First | Newest First | Positive Sentiment First | Longest Comments First
(Only showing comments with -2 votes or higher. You can alter this threshold from your profile page. Manage Profile)

Rating:  
70/100
From 04/16/2023 03:44 | #296120
Fascinating and spellbinding instrumental music. I haven't listened to a lot of Swans, but I can hear their origins in the pounding drone-grooves that these compositions frequently settle into. All in all, this is a powerful listen, but I honestly can't see myself returning to it.

Edit: I returned to it
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
95/100
From 06/16/2021 16:14 | #270715
If you listen to this, then listen to Godspeed You! Black Emperor, the influence is extremely apparent.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
95/100
From 05/06/2021 02:48 | #269398
What an enthralling listen. If you are into noise or no wave, this is a must. I don't even know what else to say, just WOW. Really good.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
100/100
From 05/03/2021 00:18 | #269288
A modern masterpiece. Rock? Classical? it's both and none at the same time. The 9th Sysmphony for the Gen X.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
60/100
From 06/19/2016 01:10 | #169097
Swans did a better cover of Lesson No 2
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (1 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
Rating:  
80/100
From 02/12/2015 19:45 | #134812
damn no one getting good ratings in this comment section
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (3 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
Rating:  
80/100
From 10/26/2014 14:55 | #125436
Don't be a prick
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (3 helpful | 3 unhelpful)
From 10/12/2014 20:03 | #124248
This comment is beneath your viewing threshold.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | -12 votes (1 helpful | 13 unhelpful)
From 10/11/2014 15:46 | #124041
This comment is beneath your viewing threshold.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | -12 votes (2 helpful | 14 unhelpful)
From 11/11/2013 23:22 | #91937
A noisy yet well composed compilation of no wave spectacles such as The Spectacular Commodity.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (2 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
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Best Albums of 1981
1. Moving Pictures by Rush
2. Computerwelt by Kraftwerk
3. Discipline by King Crimson
4. Juju by Siouxsie And The Banshees
5. My Life In The Bush Of Ghosts by Brian Eno & David Byrne
6. Time by Electric Light Orchestra
7. Faith by The Cure
8. Damaged by Black Flag
9. Dare by The Human League
10. Deceit by This Heat