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mortand

mortand

Oct 30, 2009
551
55
9,680
2001: The Zephyrs - When the Sky Comes Down It Comes Down on Your Head...marvellous shoegazey album from this Scottish band, who mix the dreamy sounds with a hint of alternative country. Supported by an impressive cast featuring members of Mogwai, Arab Strap, Slowdive and Stereolab. The stunning 'Setting Sun' is led by the always enchanting Rachel Goswell of aforementioned Slowdive.
Setting Sun

2000: Yo La Tengo - And Then Nothing Turned Itself Inside-Out...in general, one of their moodiest and melancholic pieces, but still with its share of adventure, from the noise attack 'Cherry Chapstick' to the 17-minute ambient closer 'Night Falls on Hoboken'. One of my all time favorite albums.
Our Way to Fall

1999: Low - Secret Name...an album of the transitional kind, there's a couple of almost upbeat tracks. Well, at least one. Low's strongest asset, though, will always be the hushed, slooooow tracks, of which there's plenty here on this fantastic record.
Two-Step

1998: Massive Attack - Mezzanine...dark, dark, dark. Most people are probably familiar with the beautiful 'Teardrop' and the menacing 'Angel', but there's even more. The heavy, nightmarish 'Dissolved Girl' for instance.
Dissolved Girl

1997: Elliott Smith - Either/Or...a raw, but slightly less primitive sound than his earlier albums, this is where it clicked for Elliott Smith. Spine tingling songs like 'Between the Bars' and 'No Name #5' are among the most successful. So is opener 'Speed Trials'.
Speed Trials

1996: The Walkabouts - Devil's Road...The Walkabouts' first album on a major label, which may have influenced the decision to incorporate a string ensemble. A brilliant mix of their trademark electric folk rock and stunning ballads. 'The Light Will Stay On' is one of my all time favorite songs.
The Light Will Stay On

1995: Emmylou Harris - Wrecking Ball...superbly produced by Daniel Lanois, Emmylou performs the songs of Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Jimi Hendrix, Gillian Welch and Steve Earle, like they've never been performed before. Outstanding!
Goodbye

1994: Soundgarden - Superunknown...THE album of the grunge era, in my opinion. Almost flawless and a master class of Kim Thayil's heavy guitars and Chris Cornell's Robert Plant-screaming.
4th of July

1993: Red House Painters - Red House Painters (Rollercoaster)...a slowcore monster if there ever was one. Its 80 minutes are almost unbearably personal, but so painfully haunting. Includes the best song ever, but Libertine Seguros' already mentioned that one, so here's another.
Grace Cathedral Park

1992: The Jayhawks - Hollywood Town Hall...maybe the finest alt-country album of them all? The songs are marvellous, Gary Louris and Mark Olson's vocal harmonies are spot on, and everything just clicks here. Tom Petty totally ripped off 'Waiting for the Sun', when he recorded 'Mary Jane's Last Dance'.
Waiting for the Sun

1991: Slowdive - Just for a Day...in my opinion the most underrated of the three Slowdive albums. And by far the best. It owes a lot to The Cure, although it's got its fair share of sounds bound for heaven. My favorite shoegaze album.
The Sadman

1990: Love Shop - 1990...not a terribly brilliant year in music, if I may say so, but this album is really good. Pop music with Danish lyrics and a British spirit, and featuring one of the most wonderful songs to ever come out of my corner of the world. I could listen to the guitar playing forever.
En nat bliver det sommer

The 1980's coming up! (Sooner or later)
 
Christian

Christian

Mar 13, 2009
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Libertine Seguros said:
A real favourite is "Moving" by Jeffrey Lewis, though that's just about moving in general. "Lucky Day" by Tom Waits is absolutely incredible, but is as much about the going away as the return.

However, it would take some doing to beat this for a going home song.
Click to expand...

You like Jeffrey Lewis? I'm a huge fan. Will get to go see him in Metz on 31st of January!
 
P

Pazuzu

Feb 4, 2012
435
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mortand said:
1992: The Jayhawks - Hollywood Town Hall...maybe the finest alt-country album of them all? The songs are marvellous, Gary Louris and Mark Olson's vocal harmonies are spot on, and everything just clicks here. Tom Petty totally ripped off 'Waiting for the Sun', when he recorded 'Mary Jane's Last Dance'.
Waiting for the Sun

1991: Slowdive - Just for a Day...in my opinion the most underrated of the three Slowdive albums. And by far the best. It owes a lot to The Cure, although it's got its fair share of sounds bound for heaven. My favorite shoegaze album.
The Sadman
Click to expand...

I'll have to check out Slowdive's first album. I like the 2nd, and love the third one. Totally agree about the Jayhawks' Hollywood Town Hall. Their follow up Tomorrow the Green Grass, while not as solid an overall album had, IMO, their three best songs - "I'd Runaway", "Blue" and "Miss Williams' Guitar". Brilliant band!

I look forward to reading your 80's rundown.
 
mortand

mortand

Oct 30, 2009
551
55
9,680
Pazuzu said:
I'll have to check out Slowdive's first album. I like the 2nd, and love the third one. Totally agree about the Jayhawks' Hollywood Town Hall. Their follow up Tomorrow the Green Grass, while not as solid an overall album had, IMO, their three best songs - "I'd Runaway", "Blue" and "Miss Williams' Guitar". Brilliant band!

I look forward to reading your 80's rundown.
Click to expand...

Please do check out the Slowdive album. It actually makes sense, that it's the second and third album that take the honors. I guess 'Souvlaki' is more immediate and pretty and have some incredible songs (but there's too many fillers to my liking), and 'Pygmalion' is something otherworldly, a step away from the shoegaze thing. But I just love their more gothic approach on 'Just for a Day'.

I agree wholeheartedly on the Jayhawks subject. 'Tomorrow the Green Grass' was kind of a game changer for me, I wasn't at all familiar with the alternative country scene, when I stumbled across it, and I still love it to death. Especially the songs you mention. Overall, 'Hollywood Town Hall' is just that notch better, feels more like an album to me. It's pretty much perfect.
 
mortand

mortand

Oct 30, 2009
551
55
9,680
Here comes the 80's rundown! Slightly less rambling, more to the point.

1989: Beat Happening - Black Candy...celebrating the theory that you don't necessarily have to be able to master an instrument, or sing, to start a band and write songs. At this point, though, I think Calvin Johnson and his gang were doing quite alright in that departement. It's primitive, it's charming, it's Beat Happening.
Cast a Shadow

1988: The Go-Betweens - 16 Lovers Lane...if I had to chose just one straight up guitarpop album, this would be it. As simple as that.
Love Goes On!

1987: U2 - The Joshua Tree...everybody knows this one, so no point in going further than that. U2 may have turned into something completely average these days, but this one will stand forever.
Red Hill Mining Town

1986: Cowboy Junkies - Whites Off Earth Now!!...strange choice for a debut album - seven of the nine songs are covers - but dammit! it's brilliant. John Lee Hooker, Robert Johnson and Bruce Springsteen are among the interpreted artists, and the Junkies certainly know how to make the songs their own. 'State Trooper' is chilling! Cowboy Junkies may as well have won the 1988 contest with the amazing 'The Trinity Session'.
State Trooper

1985: Dead Can Dance - Spleen and Ideal...I'm a huge fan of the 4AD label, and Dead Can Dance and Cocteau Twins are probably the quintessential 80's 4AD bands. This is my favorite DCD album, and here they're not quite the postpunk band of the 1984 debut instead moving further towards a more oriental sound. 'Mesmerism' is jawdroppingly gorgeous.
Mesmerism

1984: R.E.M. - Reckoning...IMO the greatest of their early indie records. Power pop, jangle pop, and, in 'Camera', one of their finest ballads. And '(Don't Go Back to) Rockville' of course.
(Don't Go Back to) Rockville

1983: Violent Femmes - Violent Femmes...perhaps one of the most imperfect albums out there, but the Femmes' primitive folk punk is so damn irresistible.
Promise

1982: The Gun Club - Miami...raw, manic emotion was spraying out of Jeffrey Lee Pierce and his hardhitting gang of desperados on their first two albums. This one, the second, is in my opinion the best of 1982.
Like Calling Up Thunder

1981: Echo and the Bunnymen - Heaven Up Here...speaking of desperation, Ian McCullouch certainly did possess a good chunk of that, too. The pumping title track is one of the main reasons why I love this terrific album.
Heaven Up Here

1980: Talking Heads - Remain in Light...led by the awe-inspiring single 'Once in a Lifetime', this funk-meets-afrobeat-meets-new wave shouldn't really be succeeding, but...well, it does. Oddball David Byrne and his gang of inventive musicians created quite a milestone here.
Born Under Punches (The Heat Goes On)
 
Libertine Seguros

Libertine Seguros

Feb 20, 2010
32,650
14,603
28,180
Beat Happening *swoon* I most loved them on You Turn Me On, but the earliest sound was great. I always had a soft spot for "Bad Seeds". Similarly though it's not that representative of their sound as a whole, I always thought "Lee Remick" was the best Go-Betweens song. Talking Heads were absolutely timeless though. Crosseyed and Painless is one of the most irresistible grooves ever created.

However on the other hand, I've never liked U2, and while I adore the band, "(Don't Go Back To) Rockville" is one of my absolute least favourite REM songs.
 
D

Dazed and Confused

Jan 27, 2012
14,577
1,914
25,680
mortand said:
Here comes the 80's rundown! Slightly less rambling, more to the point.

1989: Beat Happening - Black Candy...celebrating the theory that you don't necessarily have to be able to master an instrument, or sing, to start a band and write songs. At this point, though, I think Calvin Johnson and his gang were doing quite alright in that departement. It's primitive, it's charming, it's Beat Happening.
Cast a Shadow

1988: The Go-Betweens - 16 Lovers Lane...if I had to chose just one straight up guitarpop album, this would be it. As simple as that.
Love Goes On!

1987: U2 - The Joshua Tree...everybody knows this one, so no point in going further than that. U2 may have turned into something completely average these days, but this one will stand forever.
Red Hill Mining Town

1986: Cowboy Junkies - Whites Off Earth Now!!...strange choice for a debut album - seven of the nine songs are covers - but dammit! it's brilliant. John Lee Hooker, Robert Johnson and Bruce Springsteen are among the interpreted artists, and the Junkies certainly know how to make the songs their own. 'State Trooper' is chilling! Cowboy Junkies may as well have won the 1988 contest with the amazing 'The Trinity Session'.
State Trooper

1985: Dead Can Dance - Spleen and Ideal...I'm a huge fan of the 4AD label, and Dead Can Dance and Cocteau Twins are probably the quintessential 80's 4AD bands. This is my favorite DCD album, and here they're not quite the postpunk band of the 1984 debut instead moving further towards a more oriental sound. 'Mesmerism' is jawdroppingly gorgeous.
Mesmerism

1984: R.E.M. - Reckoning...IMO the greatest of their early indie records. Power pop, jangle pop, and, in 'Camera', one of their finest ballads. And '(Don't Go Back to) Rockville' of course.
(Don't Go Back to) Rockville

1983: Violent Femmes - Violent Femmes...perhaps one of the most imperfect albums out there, but the Femmes' primitive folk punk is so damn irresistible.
Promise

1982: The Gun Club - Miami...raw, manic emotion was spraying out of Jeffrey Lee Pierce and his hardhitting gang of desperados on their first two albums. This one, the second, is in my opinion the best of 1982.
Like Calling Up Thunder

1981: Echo and the Bunnymen - Heaven Up Here...speaking of desperation, Ian McCullouch certainly did possess a good chunk of that, too. The pumping title track is one of the main reasons why I love this terrific album.
Heaven Up Here

1980: Talking Heads - Remain in Light...led by the awe-inspiring single 'Once in a Lifetime', this funk-meets-afrobeat-meets-new wave shouldn't really be succeeding, but...well, it does. Oddball David Byrne and his gang of inventive musicians created quite a milestone here.
Born Under Punches (The Heat Goes On)
Click to expand...

Beat Happening - Black Candy
Almost Reed-esq, sounds good.

Cowboy Junkies
Don't agree with the pick, but I often prefer covers these days.

Violent Femmes
Solid album, but we are getting close to the end of punk here as it should be.

Most have lost track of the Echo, great band and album.
 
mortand

mortand

Oct 30, 2009
551
55
9,680
Libertine Seguros said:
Beat Happening *swoon* I most loved them on You Turn Me On, but the earliest sound was great. I always had a soft spot for "Bad Seeds". Similarly though it's not that representative of their sound as a whole, I always thought "Lee Remick" was the best Go-Betweens song. Talking Heads were absolutely timeless though. Crosseyed and Painless is one of the most irresistible grooves ever created.

However on the other hand, I've never liked U2, and while I adore the band, "(Don't Go Back To) Rockville" is one of my absolute least favourite REM songs.
Click to expand...

'Bad Seeds' - in a cover version by Teenage Fanclub - was my way into Beat Happening. I have a lot of love for that song. While I enjoy "You Turn Me On", I prefer some of their earlier stuff, e.g. "Black Candy" and "Jamboree". But it's all good.

I love 'Lee Remick' (she's a darling), but while I adore its primitive indie charm, I think The Go-Betweens got better and better, culminating with the polished and pure pop gold that is "16 Lovers Lane". Their three comeback albums were bloody great too.

And nooo, how can you not love 'Rockville'?. Sure, it's very peppy, almost 'Shine Happy People'-peppy, but that jangly countryrock sound is just kinda...cute.

Dazed and Confused said:
Most have lost track of the Echo, great band and album.
Click to expand...
I love that album, probably the Bunnymen at their most raw. They're still going relatively strong, not quite the same band, but although they're not all that manic and desperate anymore, they've still got something decent to say.
 
Libertine Seguros

Libertine Seguros

Feb 20, 2010
32,650
14,603
28,180
mortand said:
I love 'Lee Remick' (she's a darling), but while I adore its primitive indie charm, I think The Go-Betweens got better and better, culminating with the polished and pure pop gold that is "16 Lovers Lane". Their three comeback albums were bloody great too.

And nooo, how can you not love 'Rockville'?. Sure, it's very peppy, almost 'Shine Happy People'-peppy, but that jangly countryrock sound is just kinda...cute.
Click to expand...

The early Go-Betweens stuff is primitive, wilfully naïve indie before primitive indie existed, and can probably be filed along with Jonathan Richman and early Television Personalities in that.

"(Don't Go Back To) Rockville" is just plodding, dull and midtempo. It has none of the urgency of a "Radio Free Europe" or the prettiness of a "Perfect Circle" and instead comes across to me as a pastiche. And my favourite overly peppy REM single is "Stand".

Now:
Звуки Му - Грубый Закат

Probably the best band of the Russian 80s.
 
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