Top 50 Greatest Music Albums by
Dingerbell 
My favourite songs:
1. Gold Soundz by Pavement
2. Citizen Erased by Muse
3. Svefn-g-englar by Sigur Ros
4. Vapour Trail by Ride
5. Ceremony by New Order
6. Move on Up by Curtis Mayfield
7. They Reminisce Over You (T.R.O.Y.) by Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth
8. Souvlaki Space Station by Slowdive
9. Carry the Zero by Built to Spill
10. Wasted Days by Cloud Nothings
11. Helicopter by Bloc Party
12. Frontier Psychiatrist by The Avalanches
13. Two Weeks by Grizzly Bear
14. Shook Ones Part II by Mobb Deep
15. Maps by Yeah Yeah Yeahs
16. Thirteen by Big Star
17. Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space by Spiritualized
18. Chicago by Sufjan Stevens
19. Never Catch Me by Flying Lotus
20. Angeles by Elliott Smith
21. Us by Regina Spektor
22. Diamond Day by Vashti Bunyan
23. Tugboat by Galaxie 500
24. Long Season by Fishmans
25. Fancy Clown by Madvillain
- Chart updated: 07/11/2020 20:15
- (Created: 09/27/2013 19:57).
- Chart size: 50 albums.
There are 62 comments for this chart from BestEverAlbums.com members and Top 50 Greatest Music Albums has an average rating of 91 out of 100 (from 77 votes). Please log in or register to leave a comment or assign a rating.
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The song structures are incredible as: they’re either sprawling epics with one idea (such as Randy Describes Eternity) or a combination of several ideas in one song (such as Out of Site). It’s weird, as it’s clearly an indie rock album, but features strong references to prog and jazz song structures. Another reason for the comparison is the songs having such prolonged solos. For example, I Would Hurt a Fly features one lead guitar that solos for the whole song, as well as a cello, that similarly solos throughout the song. Then there’s the awesome coda, which again features incredible soloing from the lead guitar. And as the rhythm section keeps in a indie rock style, it allows not only for the long solos to sound so unbelievably natural, but also for the fantastic combination between indie rock sounding songs with jazz song structures and soloing.
Another thing I love about this album is its quirky ideas and innovations that I have not heard being done before. Things like the quiet intro in Made-up Dreams and the fade-out-fade-in outro of Stop the Show are incredible unique, and work fantastically well.
And, I can safely say, this is one of the only albums that I like the fade-outs from; it beautifully adds to the feeling of the songs sprawling on forever.
Best Moments (I’ll only do one per song before this gets out of hand):
The intro of Randy Described Eternity. Coolest intro ever.
The outro of I Would Hurt a Fly. Coolest outro ever.
Outro to Stop the Show, starting from the short solo at 5:20 to the incredible fade-out-fade-in at the very end.
The last 20 seconds of Made-up Dreams.
The guitar solo (so pretty much the whole song!) in Velvet Waltz.
Out of Site is so incredible, but my personal favourite moment is the solo after the first chorus.
4:20 to the end in Kicked It In The Sun.
The repeated moment that first appears during 0:45 to 1:10 in Untrustable/Part 2. [First added to this chart: 10/01/2013]
One word to describe this album is stunning. It’s very rare to find an album that is almost universally described as a genre’s masterpiece. And this is shows how good Loveless is. Even though I’ve heard many, many other shoegaze albums, this is still the best I’ve heard. I honestly believe it will never be topped by another album of its type. From the first guitar in Only Shallow to the very end of Soon your ears are drowned (there’s no better verb to describe it) in thick, beautiful noise. However, although the noise is unrelenting, never has an album been so melodic.
And the song structures are so lazy and free- whole songs can be one idea repeated over and over again. Usually I would criticise such repetition, but the album passes by so smoothly that your mind can miss whole songs relatively easily. However, the codas do make up for the lack of imagination. They are really fantastic additions to all the songs they’re in, and wonderfully sustain the noise between songs. And then you have the contrasts in listening experiences; if you have the album on loud it can be one of the most powerful listening experiences, yet if it’s on in the background it’s beautifully soothing and relaxing.
Loveless certainly deserves all the praise it gets, and more.
Best Moments:
The very start of Only Shallow (seriously the finest start to an album ever, it sets the album’s tone so beautifully).
The bass in Loomer.
Coda in To Here Knows When.
Intro of When You Sleep.
The abrupt ending of Come in Alone.
Sometimes. Arguably the prettiest shoegaze song ever written.
Blown a Wish. Sometimes’ competition.
The outro in Soon. [First added to this chart: 09/27/2013]
There are so many ways in which the album sets it apart from so many other post-rock albums. I mean, on paper its fairly similar, with there being odd time signatures and a lack of song structure, so what makes this album so revolutionary, unique and different? Well, the obvious difference is the vocals. The contrast between the whispered and the shouted vocals is really effective at creating the creepy mood of the album. Combined with the complex guitar riffs- which are incredible- the effect is chilling, and that effect means it’s completely set apart from all other albums of it’s genre. However, as much as I love the guitars, the best part of the whole album, and definitely the most underrated, is the drumming. Without doubt some of the best drumming I’ve ever heard. The fills are superb.
On a personal level, the album is intimidating, and sometimes even scary, but it always seems to relax me. I can feel the intensity, for sure, but I don’t, myself, feel intense when I listen. It’s as if I feel almost the opposite of what Slint intended. So for that reason, it has to go high on my chart, as it’s such a weird feeling of calmness I get, when I listen, that’s unlike anything I’ve experienced. And, as you’ve seen with my comments on the Meadowlands and Doolittle, I like albums that give me unique feelings. Although, it must be said, Good Morning, Captain does scare the crap out of me. :P
Best Moments:
Breadcrumb Trail. The whole song is just amazing.
Chorus of Nosferatu Man.
3:10 to 5:00 of Nosferatu Man. Possibly the best part of the album.
The intro and outro riffs in Don, Aman.
The guitar solo in Washer.
The "I Miss You" section in Good Morning, Captain. [First added to this chart: 09/27/2013]
If myself in my dreams would listen to any album, it would be this, because it’s just so dreamy. No, not funny? :P
This album is so beautiful yet noisy, and the guitar tones are just perfection. There are so many stunning melodies but behind that is a sea of hazy, impenetrable noise. This is classic shoegaze, but unlike any other album of the genre that you’ll ever hear. And I love it how, suddenly, the songs just get so loud that they become really intense. For example, having Souvlaki Space Station on loud is like having some kind of religious experience. I mean, with a song that good, there must be a God, right? But the whole album is really an experience. When I close my eyes, when listening, I imagine myself lying on a cloud being completely isolated from the world. I feel completely free from life, stress and worry when I hear this. And I completely adore the album title. Souvlaki. Such a pretty word. It’s some kind of Greek food, I know, but I’m really interested in why Slowdive made that the album’s title. If anyone knows, please tell me.
To sum up, this album is just so smooth and every song is perfect. And who can possibly fault Rachel Goswell’s voice? Second, only to Loveless, in terms of shoegaze. Complete brilliance.
Best Moments:
Outro of Allison.
Machine Gun. <3
The vocals at the start of Sing.
Here She Comes. A perfect short song.
Souvlaki Space Station. Possibly the masterpiece of shoegaze.
The last minute, or so, of When the Sun Hits.
The lyrics in Dagger. [First added to this chart: 09/27/2013]
This album is simply from another planet. The combination of Jónsi's crazy “are you sure its not a female singing” falsetto and the lyrics being in Icelandic/Hopelandic gives it such a unique and un-human feel; surely this is something we have intercepted from an alien transmission from another world? When this album is on loud, Jónsi's tone just pierces my soul; it gives me goose bumps.
Then you’ve got Sigur Rós’ wonderful instrumentation, combining classical and modern sounds- such as with Jónsi's signature bowed guitar. There’s not one moment of this album that isn’t filled to the brim with wonderful noise. But the noise isn’t random: it’s brilliantly effective. Part of this comes from the dynamics. They jump up on you in a discreet way, often appearing from nowhere, but whether it being one note or a whole section of a song, the sound hits you like an emotional train.
Whether it being through the dynamics, the vocals or the instrumentation, Sigur Rós really know how to grab your undivided attention. This album makes you lose concentration over your surroundings and makes you completely lose track of time, making this album the shortest double album ever created; it passes over so smoothly and so quickly that it never feels like 70 minutes.
And a quick shout out for Hjartað hamast (bamm bamm bamm), one of my favourite song titles ever. I love the (bamm bamm bamm) part; it is really cute!
Best Moments:
Svefn-g-englar. One of the greatest songs mankind has ever written. I don’t know if I just lose myself in its beauty ever time, but it only ever feels like it’s only a couple of minutes long.
The section from 4:09 to 5:32 in Starálfur.
The wonderful bass line and piano in Flugufrelsarinn.
The drums and bass in Ný batterí.
The noisy section at the end of Hjartað hamast (bamm bamm bamm).
The last two minutes of Viðrar vel til loftárása. Another “I can’t believe this is over ten minutes” song.
The drum fill in Olsen Olsen at 4:51. [First added to this chart: 09/27/2013]
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Top 50 Greatest Music Albums composition
Decade | Albums | % | |
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1930s | 0 | 0% | |
1940s | 0 | 0% | |
1950s | 1 | 2% | |
1960s | 6 | 12% | |
1970s | 6 | 12% | |
1980s | 5 | 10% | |
1990s | 16 | 32% | |
2000s | 12 | 24% | |
2010s | 4 | 8% | |
2020s | 0 | 0% |
Artist | Albums | % | |
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Slint | 1 | 2% | |
John Coltrane | 1 | 2% | |
The Jimi Hendrix Experience | 1 | 2% | |
The Wrens | 1 | 2% | |
Black Sabbath | 1 | 2% | |
Kendrick Lamar | 1 | 2% | |
Townes Van Zandt | 1 | 2% | |
Show all |
Country | Albums | % | |
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27 | 54% | |
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13 | 26% | |
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3 | 6% | |
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1 | 2% | |
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1 | 2% | |
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1 | 2% | |
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1 | 2% | |
Show all |
Top 50 Greatest Music Albums chart changes
Biggest climbers |
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![]() Reign In Blood by Slayer |
![]() Tago Mago by Can |
![]() Turn On The Bright Lights by Interpol |
New entries |
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![]() by At The Drive-In |
![]() by Boards Of Canada |
Leavers |
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![]() by Alcest |
![]() by The Modern Lovers |
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Top 50 Greatest Music Albums ratings

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Showing latest 5 ratings for this chart. | Show all 77 ratings for this chart.
Rating | Date updated | Member | Chart ratings | Avg. chart rating |
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100/100 ![]() | 02/10/2025 09:42 | SomethingSpecial | ![]() | 85/100 |
100/100 ![]() | 01/15/2025 17:03 | Exist-en-ciel | ![]() | 99/100 |
100/100 ![]() | 12/21/2022 21:03 | ![]() | ![]() | 86/100 |
80/100 ![]() | 07/12/2020 01:10 | RioBravo | ![]() | 84/100 |
95/100 ![]() | 06/18/2020 21:30 | ![]() | ![]() | 99/100 |
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This chart is rated in the top 2% of all charts on BestEverAlbums.com. This chart has a Bayesian average rating of 90.8/100, a mean average of 91.5/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 91.4/100. The standard deviation for this chart is 8.4.
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Came here because I didn't like some of your album ratings lol.
Nice chart. Good work put in too. I'm sorry you have an easier time disliking albums I tend to find great, but glad we still have a few in Common... Good job on the 1 album per artist too.

Really awesome chart. So much thought put into all your comments, and I love the "top moments" idea rather than top tracks (which doesn't make sense for some albums with only 1-3 tracks). Definite favorite

I find it good there a albums i have and most of them i knew. Really good i give you a high rating for such classic music pieces.
Really nice chart!

Unique chart, thanks for the surprise of The Avalanches

I've gotta say... this is one of my favorite charts. Even with Muse at #1. The in depth reviews are great. And it's funny, I had the exact same idea for the best moments thing; I got so tired of seeing the "top three tracks:..." thins everywhere
I was getting nervous till I saw Doolittle at 3. Solid and interesting chart.

Much better than I expected for a chart with Muse at #1

Mhm, great top 10 :D
Really good chart, not only some of my favorites but also a reminder of some albums I've been meaning to check out. I really like the idea of "favorite moments" as well, and I especially agree with things like Sometimes from Loveless and the crescendo in Epitaph.
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