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Post by spacedaisy on Dec 14, 2017 19:49:21 GMT
My next nomination is Ágætis byrjun by Sigur Rós. I have listened to Alex's Aphex Twin album once, but I need to do so again. It's been a while...
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Post by spacedaisy on Jan 13, 2018 4:43:15 GMT
Alex keeps asking if I have posted about his album yet. So here I am, feeling guilty because I have to say that I was thoroughly underwhelmed by it. It was unoffensive and very forgettable. To me anyway. I don't hate it. If he plays it in the car I don't mind. But I could fall asleep to it. It becomes background music, not something I listen to because I desire to hear it specifically. So yeah... sorry Alex.
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Post by Nola on Jan 13, 2018 4:58:32 GMT
Listening to Aphex Twin felt like work, at least to start. I don't dislike ambient music, but I kind of need it to overwhelm my senses - it needs to fill all the gaps in my head and carry me away. This album did not do that.
At the same time, I gather this album was pretty influential for the genre, so I don't want to discount its value in that sense.
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Post by movingpictures07 on Jan 16, 2018 5:13:34 GMT
No problem, you all, thanks for giving it a try! Sorry for my absence, looking forward to hearing what you all nominate next.
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Post by movingpictures07 on Jan 16, 2018 5:35:43 GMT
I'll try to keep my thoughts on SAW brief (by my standards), but I figure I should at least explain a little bit about why I nominated it, what the album means to me, and how it was instrumental in my musical development.
To say the least, it's one of my all-time favorite albums and an absolute treasure every time I listen to it. I've heard it a ridiculous number of times over the years. Each track is forever ingrained in my brain, and I couldn't be happier about that.
I suppose my tastes are relatively eclectic. I started out loving music via progressive rock and what some people would call "classic rock", but quickly branched out into jazz via jazz fusion, avant-garde music of many kinds, and electronic via progressive electronic and IDM. I eventually grew a taste for quality pop, metal, and various other things as well (including the occasional bluegrass but not so much country or classical, which are the only genres where I feel I am completely out of my element).
Nonetheless, I can say with confident that electronic and ambient music are my biggest musical passions / areas of interest these days. This album in particular is in large part responsible for that (in addition to key albums by other foundational artists such as Brian Eno, Kraftwerk, Tangerine Dream, New Order, Autechre, Boards of Canada, Tim Hecker, etc.).
There was a time when I really struggled with repetition in music, be it pop, electronic, metal, or anything, and I initially didn't even love this album even if I thought it was kinda cool. I remember listening to it for the first time nearly 15 years ago and thinking many of the songs had cool ideas but were way too repetitive. Something kept pulling me back to it though, and it wasn't long before I really started loving this album, and I became more receptive to well-utilized repetition in other music as well. I am very thankful to this album for this.
It's hard to summarize what I love so much about it. It's this perfect combination of its influences yet completely groundbreaking. In terms of sound it's ethereal and immersive in every sense of both words, which I'm admittedly a total sucker for. Every track is its own musical painting, a 'soundscape' if you will, which may sound pretentious but ever since I first started my passion with music it's how I've always naturally approached it. A lot of the time what I love about a really good electronic album is the journey and the visual landscapes it can paint in my mind.
This album pretty much founded what later became known as IDM as well as ambient techno; I cannot overstate its influence enough. Although it's been over 25 years now since it came out, I don't feel like it sounds dated one bit. I've actually grown to love more and more over time as I listen to other techno, ambient, etc., and realize just how unique it still sounds despite its widespread influence upon the genre. Absolutely a landmark electronic album that never fails to take me away.
I'd give it a perfect score without hesitation every day of the week.
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Post by Nola on Jan 17, 2018 12:35:55 GMT
Now we've got choices to make. Alex, we need your next nomination. These are the nominations so far:
Wildflowers - Tom Petty (Antonio) Language, Sex, Violence - Stereophonics (Andrew) Lateralus - Tool (CJ) Ágætis Byrjun - Sigur Rós (Annie) ? - ? (Alex)
Which of these do we want to start with?
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Post by spacedaisy on Jan 17, 2018 17:44:16 GMT
I guess I assumed we would just continue in the previous order? But I am honestly fine with whatever everyone wants.
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Post by movingpictures07 on Jan 17, 2018 23:31:01 GMT
I'll nominate Since I Left You by The Avalanches.
Whatever order works for me, doesn't matter!
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Post by Nola on Jan 18, 2018 0:25:38 GMT
We can certainly do it that way, which is probably simpler. In that case, up next is Wildflowers by Tom Petty, as suggested by Antonio!
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Post by Nola on Jan 20, 2018 1:06:27 GMT
But first:
INTERMISSION
The AV Club has this series called AV Undercover, where they invite bands to come in and play a cover of a well-known song. They've been doing this for years, and it's produced some of my favorite covers ever (spoiler alert: I love covers), including a few by GWAR that were phenomenal.
Anyway, the AV Club recently split from The Onion, and as a result had to take all their old Undercover uploads down, which was a real bummer. Fortunately, some enterprising Internet people have managed to find copies and have started to reupload them to YouTube, including this video which is one of my favorites of all time:
This is Jeff Rosenstock and AJJ, two of my favorite acts ever, performing a mashup of 16 different songs previously performed on Undercover. Rosenstock and company start out with four solid, high-energy versions of:
Ever Fallen in Love by The Buzzcocks Panama by Van Halen Thinkin' 'Bout You by Frank Ocean Bizarre Love Triangle by New Order
It's a solid start to nine minutes of pure joy, when AJJ takes the stage and plays a masterfully-blended rendition of:
Psycho Killer by Talking Heads Heart of Gold by Neil Young (AJJ loves Neil Young) Barracuda by Heart Gates of Steel by Devo We Got the Beat by The Go-Go's Go Your Own Way by Fleetwood Mac Linger by The Cranberries Teenage Dirtbag by Wheatus Surrender by Cheap Trick Undone (The Sweater Song) by Weezer Plush by Stone Temple Pilots (AJJ's first appearance on Undercover was a cover of Plush) Prayer to God by Shellac
The way they layered The Go-Go's, Fleetwood Mac, The Cranberries, and Wheatus into Gates of Steel is ridiculous, and it's the transition into Surrender that lets you know you're watching something special. I friggin' love this video to death.
Anyway, rant over. I'll relisten to Wildflowers this week, and we can get started on round 2!
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Post by Deleted on Jan 26, 2018 10:05:21 GMT
Hi all!
I'm back, so I thought I should post my thoughts on Aphex Twin. I'll be brief though, it has been a few weeks since I heard it so I can't be as specific as I could have been back then!
So, I didn't like it. I think I listened to it perhaps 7 or 8 times total (I always give albums due attention) and yet at the end of that many listens, I couldn't even hum a little bit of any song. It was forgettable, and at times it actively irritated me. Sorry Alex, this wasn't my cup of tea.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 28, 2018 15:19:47 GMT
Previous:
The Midnight Organ Fight by Frightened Rabbit - Antonio A Moon Shaped Pool by Radiohead - Andrew Stop, Drop & Roll' by The Foxboro Hot Tubs - CJ Dear Catastrophe Waitress by Belle and Sebastian - Annie Selected Ambient Works 85-92 by Aphex Twin - Alex
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Current: Wildflowers by Tom Petty - Antonio
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Upcoming:
Language, Sex, Violence by Stereophonics - Andrew Lateralus by Tool - CJ Ágætis byrjun by Sigur Rós - Annie Since I Left You by The Avalanches - Alex ? ? - Antonio
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Post by Nola on Mar 7, 2018 0:47:05 GMT
Sorry for the delay. I had an arduous February.
I liked Wildflowers. It's a solid album book-ended by a few great songs: Wildflowers, You Don't Know How it Feels, and Wake Up Time. The middle, I felt, was uninspired, but decent. I can't help but compare this album to Full Moon Fever, which I felt was a more dynamic offering with a more varied range, but it's still quite enjoyable. If I were doing a star scale, I'd probably go 3 out of 5.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 28, 2018 16:03:09 GMT
Previous:
The Midnight Organ Fight by Frightened Rabbit - Antonio A Moon Shaped Pool by Radiohead - Andrew Stop, Drop & Roll' by The Foxboro Hot Tubs - CJ Dear Catastrophe Waitress by Belle and Sebastian - Annie Selected Ambient Works 85-92 by Aphex Twin - Alex Wildflowers by Tom Petty - Antonio
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Current: Language. Sex. Violence. Other? by Stereophonics - Andrew
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Upcoming:
Lateralus by Tool - CJ Ágætis byrjun by Sigur Rós - Annie Since I Left You by The Avalanches - Alex Z by My Morning Jacket - Andrew
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