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I've been so politics obsessed recently that I am losing touch with my other interests.
So Imma make a thread of my favorite albums, cuz I really am just a massive music snob.
So Imma make a thread of my favorite albums, cuz I really am just a massive music snob.
Gonna be in alphabetical, fyi.
If I used numbers (which I don't) these would all probably be 9s or higher.
If I used numbers (which I don't) these would all probably be 9s or higher.
Start off with something recent.
Always been a Fiona fan, but this album finally had the gritty, sloppy production to match the gritty vocals.
Always thought Fiona held back on her albums. Not on this one.
Always been a Fiona fan, but this album finally had the gritty, sloppy production to match the gritty vocals.
Always thought Fiona held back on her albums. Not on this one.
I'm bein pretty basic, but no snobs list is complete without at least one Beatles album.
Abbey Road is just their most complete and thematic work, so on the list it goes.
Abbey Road is just their most complete and thematic work, so on the list it goes.
Less basic here.
The Patty Patty Sound makes up the middle section of the more well known Three EPs compilation.
Most bizarre, experimental, funky, and eclectic work the Beta Band ever did.
The Patty Patty Sound makes up the middle section of the more well known Three EPs compilation.
Most bizarre, experimental, funky, and eclectic work the Beta Band ever did.
Blur - 13
The best Blur album.
Fight me.
And fuck Oasis.
The best Blur album.
Fight me.
And fuck Oasis.
Calexico - The Black Light
Post-rock a la Slint mixed with... mariachi?
Kinda gimmicky but I think it's real cool.
Post-rock a la Slint mixed with... mariachi?
Kinda gimmicky but I think it's real cool.
Can - Tago Mago
Would this be a snob's list without Can?
Also, I will fight y'all if you think Aumgn or Peking O aren't integral parts of the album.
Aumgn is the most Stockhausen thing Stockhausen didn't make, and the most influential song on here.
Would this be a snob's list without Can?
Also, I will fight y'all if you think Aumgn or Peking O aren't integral parts of the album.
Aumgn is the most Stockhausen thing Stockhausen didn't make, and the most influential song on here.
Can - Future Days
Can proving their versatility here. Their most relaxed and complete album, I think. No second is wasted here. More focused than Tago, though I still like Tago more.
Jaki is the greatest drummer who ever lived. I will die on that hill.
Can proving their versatility here. Their most relaxed and complete album, I think. No second is wasted here. More focused than Tago, though I still like Tago more.
Jaki is the greatest drummer who ever lived. I will die on that hill.
Cocteau Twins - Head Over Heels
The Cocteau Twins never made a bad album. Ever. They're all at least good.
But this one is greater than the rest. Sugar Hiccup is *fucking sublime* and is the most uplifting shit.
The Cocteau Twins never made a bad album. Ever. They're all at least good.
But this one is greater than the rest. Sugar Hiccup is *fucking sublime* and is the most uplifting shit.
Debussy - La Mer
One of the best recordings of one of the best impressionist composer's best works.
He only ever did 3 symphonic works and this was his best. Can really feel the influence of Gamelan stuff here. Really refreshing.
One of the best recordings of one of the best impressionist composer's best works.
He only ever did 3 symphonic works and this was his best. Can really feel the influence of Gamelan stuff here. Really refreshing.
Decemberists - The Tain (EP)
The prog-iest thing the Decemberists ever did, and therefore the best.
Seriously, this one 20min song runs the gamut from hard rocking to creepy waltzing to bizarre call and response and all that shit.
Varied and weird.
The prog-iest thing the Decemberists ever did, and therefore the best.
Seriously, this one 20min song runs the gamut from hard rocking to creepy waltzing to bizarre call and response and all that shit.
Varied and weird.
Everything Everything - Get to Heaven
Fun, bizarre, art pop record with kinda wild vocals and some of the coolest/weirdest/dumbest lyrics ever.
Severely underrated.
Fun, bizarre, art pop record with kinda wild vocals and some of the coolest/weirdest/dumbest lyrics ever.
Severely underrated.
Fall Out Boy - Folie a Deux
We all have that one album that we loved in our edgy days and then never grew out of?
This is that one for me.
We all have that one album that we loved in our edgy days and then never grew out of?
This is that one for me.
Peter Gabriel - Peter Gabriel (Melt/III)
The album that invented gated reverb, the drum sound of the 80s.
Also, it's Peter Gabriel at his most angsty and psychotic. Whats not to like here?
The album that invented gated reverb, the drum sound of the 80s.
Also, it's Peter Gabriel at his most angsty and psychotic. Whats not to like here?
Peter Gabriel - Passion
The soundtrack to Scorsese's Last Temptation w/some reworked tracks.
Pretty much catapulted new age music into the mainstream, and is still the best new age album ever imho.
The soundtrack to Scorsese's Last Temptation w/some reworked tracks.
Pretty much catapulted new age music into the mainstream, and is still the best new age album ever imho.
Genesis - Selling England by the Pound
For the record, this *is* my favorite album.
Made me realize that there was a whole world of music out there I'd never heard before.
Changed my life, literally.
For the record, this *is* my favorite album.
Made me realize that there was a whole world of music out there I'd never heard before.
Changed my life, literally.
Genesis - The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway
Such an outlier for them
What if Collins played like Bruford? What if Tony Banks actually could play synth? And all the 12 string?
Combined with Gabriel's best lyrics.
"It's the bottom of a staircase, that spirals out of sight."
Such an outlier for them
What if Collins played like Bruford? What if Tony Banks actually could play synth? And all the 12 string?
Combined with Gabriel's best lyrics.
"It's the bottom of a staircase, that spirals out of sight."
Osvaldo Golijov - Dreams and Prayers of Isaac the Blind
If this Kronos quartet recording doesn't make you fall in love with Klezmer music, nothing will.
The clarinetist on here absolutely SHREDS.
If this Kronos quartet recording doesn't make you fall in love with Klezmer music, nothing will.
The clarinetist on here absolutely SHREDS.
Gong - Camembert Electrique
Want some weird-ass prog/jazz/psych rock?
Ya ever done acid?
Ever meet a pothead pixie?
This album fucking slaaaaaps.
Want some weird-ass prog/jazz/psych rock?
Ya ever done acid?
Ever meet a pothead pixie?
This album fucking slaaaaaps.
Gorillaz - Demon Days
I dont think I need to explain or justify this one. We all know it's good.
I dont think I need to explain or justify this one. We all know it's good.
NSFW//
The Jesus Lizard - Goat
Great classic noise rock. Aggressive, disturbing, and also surprisingly funny.
Thanks twitter for allowing tatas in your uploads cuz I won't leave this off the list.
The Jesus Lizard - Goat
Great classic noise rock. Aggressive, disturbing, and also surprisingly funny.
Thanks twitter for allowing tatas in your uploads cuz I won't leave this off the list.
Jethro Tull - Thick as a Brick
Folk rock band says: you thought our last album was prog? Fuck you, we're gonna make the proggiest album ever and you're gonna like it.
And they did.
Folk rock band says: you thought our last album was prog? Fuck you, we're gonna make the proggiest album ever and you're gonna like it.
And they did.
King Crimson - Red
Hard to pick between this and Larks, but I really do love this record.
Starless is the best KC song, you cannot change my mind.
Hard to pick between this and Larks, but I really do love this record.
Starless is the best KC song, you cannot change my mind.
The Kinks - Village Green Preservation Society
You, smooth brain: The Beatles or the Rolling Stones?
Me, galaxy brain: The Kinks
You, smooth brain: The Beatles or the Rolling Stones?
Me, galaxy brain: The Kinks
Matmos - Matmos
Matmos is my favorite band. Period. Absolutely bonkers weird electronic duo.
This album gets a bad rep cuz it gets labeled as glitch or IDM.
It's not.
It is 100% Throbbing Gristle style industrial. And I LOVE IT.
Matmos is my favorite band. Period. Absolutely bonkers weird electronic duo.
This album gets a bad rep cuz it gets labeled as glitch or IDM.
It's not.
It is 100% Throbbing Gristle style industrial. And I LOVE IT.
Matmos - Plastic Anniversary
The album that introduced me to Matmos.
Samples everything from silicone breast implants to billiard balls to broken pieces of vinyl *specifically* of the 70s soft rock band, Bread.
Crazy shit.
The album that introduced me to Matmos.
Samples everything from silicone breast implants to billiard balls to broken pieces of vinyl *specifically* of the 70s soft rock band, Bread.
Crazy shit.
Charles Mingus - Black Saint and the Sinner Lady
Album that got me into jazz.
Ever want to hear like 3 people soloing right over each other? No?
Too bad.
Album that got me into jazz.
Ever want to hear like 3 people soloing right over each other? No?
Too bad.
Moondog - Moondog (1969)
Little symphoniques with smatterings of classical, baroque, jazz, and proto-minimalist styles.
Really visionary and exceedingly relaxing.
Little symphoniques with smatterings of classical, baroque, jazz, and proto-minimalist styles.
Really visionary and exceedingly relaxing.
Mouse on Mars - Iaora Tahiti
Incredibly optimistic IDM/Krautrock to contrast against the very bleak soundscapes of other electronic artists in the 90s.
Totally out of left field for the scene.
Incredibly optimistic IDM/Krautrock to contrast against the very bleak soundscapes of other electronic artists in the 90s.
Totally out of left field for the scene.
cw//suicide
Nick Drake - Pink Moon
The most legitimately depressing album ever recorded.
The song Parasite is the most genuine expression of a someone on the verge of suicide ever written.
But From the Morning at the end gives it an optimistic closer.
Nick Drake - Pink Moon
The most legitimately depressing album ever recorded.
The song Parasite is the most genuine expression of a someone on the verge of suicide ever written.
But From the Morning at the end gives it an optimistic closer.
Steve Reich - Different Trains
I prefer the boiler room performance on YouTube, but the Kronos Quartet is always solid.
A mesmerizing piece of minimalism using recordings of holocaust survivors alongside mirrored strings.
I prefer the boiler room performance on YouTube, but the Kronos Quartet is always solid.
A mesmerizing piece of minimalism using recordings of holocaust survivors alongside mirrored strings.
Terry Riley - Rainbow in Curved Air/Poppy No-Good
Another piece of minimalism making the list.
Totally a trip, this one. Equal parts floaty, spooky, and ecstatic.
Another piece of minimalism making the list.
Totally a trip, this one. Equal parts floaty, spooky, and ecstatic.
Prokofiev - Piano Concerto No. 3 in C Major
Argerich's performance here is fantastic for one of the seminal pieces from one of the most important composers of the 20th century.
A classic.
Argerich's performance here is fantastic for one of the seminal pieces from one of the most important composers of the 20th century.
A classic.
Sigur Ros - Agaetis Byrjun
Pretty fantastic post-rock/dream pop record.
Solid all around and a great intro to the genre.
Pretty fantastic post-rock/dream pop record.
Solid all around and a great intro to the genre.
Slint - Spiderland
Easily one of the best, if not the best, post-rock/post-hardcore records ever made. Though it's really impossible to categorize.
Absolutely emotionally devastating.
Easily one of the best, if not the best, post-rock/post-hardcore records ever made. Though it's really impossible to categorize.
Absolutely emotionally devastating.
Sonic Youth - Daydream Nation
Kinda the basic Sonic Youth pick, but I don't care. It's a great album.
Almost worth it for Candle and Eric's Trip alone.
Kinda the basic Sonic Youth pick, but I don't care. It's a great album.
Almost worth it for Candle and Eric's Trip alone.
Soul Coughing - Ruby Vroom
"As the radioman says 'it is 5 A.M. / and the sun has charred the other side of the world and come back to us / And painted the smoke over our heads an imperial violet.'"
Mike Dougherty is a poet.
"As the radioman says 'it is 5 A.M. / and the sun has charred the other side of the world and come back to us / And painted the smoke over our heads an imperial violet.'"
Mike Dougherty is a poet.
Stars of the Lid - The Tired Sounds of...
A beautiful, ethereal exercise is turning electronic drone into acoustic skill.
My headache album.
I've listened to this enough that I can hum along... to a *drone* album.
A beautiful, ethereal exercise is turning electronic drone into acoustic skill.
My headache album.
I've listened to this enough that I can hum along... to a *drone* album.
St. Vincent - Marry Me
An album full of beautiful, dark tracks and aggressive moments of ugly noise.
Every song, on the surface, seems simple. But diving deeper exposes them as being deceptively complex.
An album full of beautiful, dark tracks and aggressive moments of ugly noise.
Every song, on the surface, seems simple. But diving deeper exposes them as being deceptively complex.
Sufjan Stevens - Illinois
Delicate, varied, and clever.
Just some good-ass indie-folk with a liberal amount of wordplay and unique instrumentals.
Delicate, varied, and clever.
Just some good-ass indie-folk with a liberal amount of wordplay and unique instrumentals.
Tyler, the Creator - Flower Boy
Definitely the white boy pick, but sue me, I am.
Definitely the white boy pick, but sue me, I am.
Velvet Underground - ...and Nico
Kind of a meme, but still one of the most important records ever made.
Haunting as hell, at points.
Subversive and extremely dark.
Kind of a meme, but still one of the most important records ever made.
Haunting as hell, at points.
Subversive and extremely dark.
Van der Graaf Generator - Pawn Hearts
One of the wackiest, noisiest prog records ever. Completely uncompromising, completely bombastic and dumb in a good way.
They were on tour with Genesis after Nursery Cryme came out, would kill to go back in time to see that.
One of the wackiest, noisiest prog records ever. Completely uncompromising, completely bombastic and dumb in a good way.
They were on tour with Genesis after Nursery Cryme came out, would kill to go back in time to see that.
Violent Femmes - Violent Femmes
A classic so ahead of its time that its lead single didn't hit the charts until the 90s, 10 years after its release.
A classic so ahead of its time that its lead single didn't hit the charts until the 90s, 10 years after its release.
Ween - The Mollusk
Ween is probably one of the most exciting, weird, and varied bands ever.
No two Ween albums are the same. No two songs even.
And this album inspired SpongeBob, so...
Ween is probably one of the most exciting, weird, and varied bands ever.
No two Ween albums are the same. No two songs even.
And this album inspired SpongeBob, so...
Ween - Quebec
Ween is usually a very goofy band, never taking themselves seriously.
This album is goofy, but also very serious.
Anxious, funny, depressing, and nihilistic are all words I'd use to describe it.
And the Argus is the greatest anti-religious song ever written.
Ween is usually a very goofy band, never taking themselves seriously.
This album is goofy, but also very serious.
Anxious, funny, depressing, and nihilistic are all words I'd use to describe it.
And the Argus is the greatest anti-religious song ever written.
Yes - Fragile
Better than Close to the Edge. Cope and seethe.
Better than Close to the Edge. Cope and seethe.
Thats the end of the alphabetical list. Anything beyond this point is stuff I forgot earlier, or have more recently discovered.
IDLES - Joy is an Act of Resistance
Where my politics and music taste collide.
Also, I'm a huuuuuge fan of post-punk in general, so...
Where my politics and music taste collide.
Also, I'm a huuuuuge fan of post-punk in general, so...
Pere Ubu - The Modern Dance
On the topic of post-punk, here's the greatest post-punk album ever recorded. A true embodiment of post industrial anxiety.
Something I can be proud of Ohio for too. Home-state represent!
On the topic of post-punk, here's the greatest post-punk album ever recorded. A true embodiment of post industrial anxiety.
Something I can be proud of Ohio for too. Home-state represent!
The Pop Group - Y
Continuing the post-punk collection here is this completely unhinged gem of an album.
Unholy fusion of punk, funk, and dub. Plus copious amounts of incredibly violent energy.
Impressive as hell and insanely manic.
Continuing the post-punk collection here is this completely unhinged gem of an album.
Unholy fusion of punk, funk, and dub. Plus copious amounts of incredibly violent energy.
Impressive as hell and insanely manic.
Philip Glass - Koyaanisqatsi
Moondog, then Reich, then Riley, and now Glass. Can ya tell I like minimalism?
A haunting score for a haunting film about ecological destruction due to human activity (so super relevant to me).
Very mantric and hypnotizing. Great intro to Glass.
Moondog, then Reich, then Riley, and now Glass. Can ya tell I like minimalism?
A haunting score for a haunting film about ecological destruction due to human activity (so super relevant to me).
Very mantric and hypnotizing. Great intro to Glass.
Just as a warning, the next like 3-ish albums I'm putting on this thread are...
Not for people who like their music to sound like... music.
One could easily argue that these are not music at all, and I would be forced to just shrug, because that may or may not be true.
Not for people who like their music to sound like... music.
One could easily argue that these are not music at all, and I would be forced to just shrug, because that may or may not be true.
