The Ascension (studio album)
by Glenn Branca

Album
The Ascension by Glenn Branca
Year: 1981
Overall rank: 1,125th   Overall chart historyOverall chart history
Average Rating: 
79/100 (from 212 votes)
  Ratings distributionRatings distribution   Average rating historyAverage rating history
Accolades:
Award Top 20 albums of 1981 (15th)
Award Top albums of the 1980s (176th)
Award Best albums of all time (1,125th)

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BRANCA , GLENN - THE ASCENSION NEW VINYL
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$37.10


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Glenn Branca The Ascension (Vinyl) 12" Album
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$39.27


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GLENN BRANCA - THE THIRD ASCENSION NEW CD
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$21.97


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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 (1,125th)
The Ascension Lower ranked (12,017th) »
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 ratingsTrack ratings The tracks on this album have an average rating of 81 out of 100 (all tracks have been rated).

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#
Track
Rating/Comments
1.
Lesson No.2
Rating: 78 (42 votes)Comments: View 2
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2.
The Spectacular Commodity
Rating: 83 (38 votes)Comments: View 1
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3.
Structure
Rating: 80 (36 votes)Comments: View 0
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4.
Light Field (In Consonance)
Rating: 82 (36 votes)Comments: View 0
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5.
The Ascension
Rating: 83 (39 votes)Comments: View 0
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The Ascension rankings

The Ascension collection

The Ascension ratings

Average Rating: 
79/100 (from 212 votes)
  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 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 212 ratings for this album.

Sort by
RatingDate updatedMemberAlbum ratingsAvg. album rating
 
70/100
 Report rating		11/17/2025 04:06 Exist-en-ciel  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 1,22068/100
 
60/100
 Report rating		11/12/2025 09:49 MadhattanJack  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 5,23065/100
 
80/100
 Report rating		09/06/2025 16:14 matterhornrider  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 4,72181/100
 
70/100
 Report rating		08/28/2025 20:43 WeWereInLove  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 6181/100
 
95/100
 Report rating		08/17/2025 03:52 mttr-in-plc  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 19288/100

Rating metrics: 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 78.8/100, a mean average of 77.3/100, 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 | Maximum Rated 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
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
#296120 | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
95/100
From 06/16/2021 16:14
If you listen to this, then listen to Godspeed You! Black Emperor, the influence is extremely apparent.
#270715 | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
95/100
From 05/06/2021 02:48
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.
#269398 | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
100/100
From 05/03/2021 00:18
A modern masterpiece. Rock? Classical? it's both and none at the same time. The 9th Sysmphony for the Gen X.
#269288 | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
60/100
From 06/19/2016 01:10
Swans did a better cover of Lesson No 2
#169097 | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (1 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
Rating:  
80/100
From 02/12/2015 19:45
damn no one getting good ratings in this comment section
#134812 | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (3 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
Rating:  
80/100
From 10/26/2014 14:55
Don't be a prick
#125436 | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (3 helpful | 3 unhelpful)
From 10/12/2014 20:03
This comment is beneath your viewing threshold.
#124248 | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | -12 votes (1 helpful | 13 unhelpful)
From 10/11/2014 15:46
This comment is beneath your viewing threshold.
#124041 | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | -12 votes (2 helpful | 14 unhelpful)
From 11/11/2013 23:22
A noisy yet well composed compilation of no wave spectacles such as The Spectacular Commodity.
#91937 | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (2 helpful | 1 unhelpful)

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Buy album United States
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. Dare by The Human League
9. Damaged by Black Flag
10. Deceit by This Heat
11. Youth Of America by Wipers
12. Tattoo You by The Rolling Stones
13. Fire Of Love by The Gun Club
14. Ghost In The Machine by The Police
15. The Ascension by Glenn Branca
16. Heaven Up Here by Echo & The Bunnymen
17. Face Value by Phil Collins
18. Killers by Iron Maiden
19. Movement by New Order
20. Nightclubbing by Grace Jones
 
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