Tim's Top 5:
Let's be honest, a closer is only as good as his entrance music. Actually, Brad Lidge was about 45-for-45 in saves last year...and he came in to Drowning Pool. So, in fact, a closer is considerably better than his entrance music. Unless that closer would be me.
Everything I've read claims that the movie Major League is really responsible for the association of a single song with a closer...but I don't buy it, because at least at minor league ballparks, they did it before that movie came out. I remember Greg Everson coming out before Luis Encarnacion in Omaha to "Thank God I'm A Country Boy" (which is fine for a middle reliever, obviously not really a closer song).
This was a tough list, because there are songs that work until you actually listen to the substance of the lyrics (like, say, Muse's "Time Is Running Out") Oh, and I don't listen to heavy metal, which means that ... yeah, I had to be creative.
1. Pearl Jam - Save You -- Why? Well, I mean, come on, it's a little perfect. It has a great crunching guitar intro, the first guitar comes in, a second, then the drums hit before the vocals come in. And the first few lines are flawless. "I'm gonna save you, fucker (it'd be fine, you can't tell that's what he's saying)/ I'm not gonna lose you / I'm feeling cocky and strong, can't let you go / Too important to me, too important to us, we'd be lost with you")
It does have one lyrical minus -- "Why are you hitting yourself? Come on, hit me instead." This would not exactly inspire the fans' confidence...but perhaps I'm a pitch-to-contact closer along the lines of Bob Wickman and Brandon Lyon, so the fans already hate me regardless of my theme music.
It starts a little too hard, I like the escalation of #5 (and also Enter Sandman, which I think is otherwise not a good song for this purpose), but it's already taken.
2. Alice Cooper – School’s Out – This might be the perfect timing, because there’s a point at 1:14 (right before the high-pitched middle eight) where the song should be cut off by the public address announcer to announce “Your attention please…now pitching …” – if they can draw it out to 1:29, it has a hard bounceback. It’s a profoundly recognizable song, it’s just annoying enough to actually be used as a closer’s anthem.
The lyrics work, I think. Listen, you’ve had your chance to learn how to hit with the shitty pitchers in innings 1-8…school’s out, time to step up.
3. Stevie Wonder – You Haven’t Done Nothin’” – Again, the timing on this song is good here. At 1:03, plenty of opportunity for the announcer to cut in to announce the closer’s arrival. I like the funky, taunting beat and I think you just strut in from the bullpen for this one. It was meant to scorn Richard Nixon, but I think it’d work just as well on Trot Nixon. The entire thing just has a very taunting feel to it that is kind of missing with the blaring heavy metal surplusage that has led two different Drowning Pool songs to be used as closer entrance themes.
4. R.E.M. – "Circus Envy" – I love this song. The growling beginning and heavy drum and crackling distortion pedal at the beginning really cement it, the opening lyrics are pretty taunting “Here comes that awful feeling again” (though after a few blown saves…we’ll see who’s having the awful feeling). It lightens a little too much about 45 seconds into the song, but the repeating intro loop is really the key.
At 2:29, the lyrics hit their peak “If I were you, I’d really run from me”. True enough, R.E.M.
5. AC/DC - "Hell's Bells" - Trevor Hoffman already has that one, as you can see from this video ...and for a good damn reason. "Thunderstruck" is also a pretty good entrance song, so I think we've identified what AC/DC is good for -- closer songs and songs you know someone would request at a strip club ("You Shook Me All Night Long")
It’s really a shame that Trevor Hoffman never pitched for the Phillies, because if they got the Liberty Bell in center field to “ring” right as he hit the warning track for the first bell…it’d be amazing.
Honorable mention: Wagner - March of the Valkyries - Listen. It is not my fault that Wagner was anti-Semitic. This is the heavy metal equivalent of classical music, and it sounds pretty damn sinister; The Arcade Fire – Keep the Car Running - Again, I thought of this for primarily lyrical reasons, because it seems to me to be the equivalent of “trust me, we won’t be here long”; Muse – Hysteria – start the song 10 seconds in. That’s it.; Jay-Z "Encore" - the reference to Brooklyn keeps it out of the top 5 for me, otherwise I think it’s pretty spot on; Oasis - “Hello” - Start at 12 seconds. I’m not sure why I like it for this – I think it’s the “it’s good to be back” refrain that seems so apropos for a regularly-injured underdog pitcher who survives on sheer guile. You know, the one I’d be destined to be if I hadn’t sucked too much for the injuries to matter; Presidents of the United States of America – “Cleveland Rocks” – if I played for the Indians, you’d damn well better believe I’d be a lousy enough closer to pander to the home fans (all of whom are white and therefore none of them actually live in Cleveland, but they’d still pretend).
Dan's Top 5:
I have included Youtube links indicating when, precisely, I want the music to kick in.
1. Iron Maiden - Run To The Hills - A song about rampaging, murderous war by the white man against the Native Americans. Comes in especially handy when our team plays against the Cleveland Indians or the Atlanta Braves. Or the Washington Redskins, if they decide to quit football and try baseball instead.
2. Peter Gabriel - The Tower That Ate People - One of the most kickass songs that Gabriel's done, and I think it would have the added bonus of frightening little children. Downside - not very effective if you're not dressed in all black or at least wearing black sunglasses.
3. Metallica - Enter Sandman - A nod to my Virginia Tech days, when you could play Enter Sandman (our stadium entrance song) and immediately get everyone in audible range to jump up and down and go absolutely berserk. It didn't even have to be football season.
4. Meat Loaf - Bat Out Of Hell - I will refuse to throw a pitch until the song is finished. I may promptly be demoted to the franchise's AAA team, but a man needs his Meat Loaf.
5. Rage Against The Machine - Bulls On Parade - Still my favorite Rage song after all these years. I could have gone for something a little more obscure to close out this list, but I think that fans will appreciate my taste in music. It sure will make up for the fact that I am a shitty closer and will cost our team the win.
Ryan's Top 5:
I went solely with kickass music, though part of me does want to enter to "Why Can't We Be Friends?" a la Homer's boxing intro.
1. Iron Maiden - The Number of the Beast - Time-wise, this song is perfect. Start it at the normal time, then dim the stadium lights as I enter jogging; at about 56 seconds, right when I throw my first warmup pitch, Bruce Dickinson screams and the crowd goes wild. I would definitely make a point of timing this perfectly. Bonus points in that the tone of the song would ideally terrify the Bible-thumping Mike Sweeneys of the world; regrettably, it would be no deterrent to the Satan-worshiping AJ Pierzynskis of the world (though his ability to hit is a solid deterrent to begin with).
2. Sergei Prokofiev - Dance of the Knights - Probably a bit high for a classical song, but I've had this in my head all day long and have been convinced of its ass-kickery since Muse opened HAARP with it. (Youtube took down the clip, unfortunately.) Ultimately, this song beats other classical contenders ("Mars, Bringer of War," and "The Imperial March" from Star Wars).
3. Morning Glory - Oasis - As far as I can tell, you cannot go wrong with a helicopter sound effect introducing a song. (See: "The Happiest Days of our Lives," Pink Floyd.) (This is where someone cites the Kid Rock/Sheryl Crow song I'm forgetting that features a helicopter.) Lyrically, this song is sufficiently vague enough, as well: "All your dreams are made..." "Today's the day that all the world will see..."
4. Black Sabbath - Iron Man - As cliche as this song is (it's almost certainly used by some closer somewhere), it's too good for me to pass up. This song is rare in that my favorite part is about ten seconds in, when the robot voice says I AM IRON MAN. But oh well.
5. Kool and the Gang - Jungle Boogie - I have been in love with this song since Pulp Fiction. Play this, I'll throw a 1-2-3 ninth, then we cap it off with "Celebration" by the same band, bam! I rule!
Honorables: "Hell's Bells" was really written to be a sports intro theme.
Showing posts with label pearl jam. Show all posts
Showing posts with label pearl jam. Show all posts
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Top 5 Songs with Colors in the Title
This needs no explanation, but it is good to know that Ryan and I can still come up with list ideas while he's on the phone driving cross-country. (It's also good to know where his priorities lie.)
Dan's Top 5:
1. "Golden Brown" - The Stranglers - The Stranglers released their first album in 1977 and were originally considered a punk group. I mean, just listen to "Peaches" and you'll wonder how they ever came up with a song this chill and... acoustic. On the other hand, the song is about heroin. To quote Wikipedia: "Many buyers were seemingly unaware of the meaning of the lyrics, which contain metaphorical references to heroin. This may have been further confused by different band members claiming that the song was about desertification, imperialism and as said in a recent interview, 'toast'."
2. "Little Red Corvette" - Prince - I don't know how you guys feel about Prince. Actually, let me rephrase that. I don't care how you guys feel about Prince. To me, this is probably the song that epitomizes the 80's. Any imagery that this song elicits has to take place at night, preferably in a big, extra-materialistic city.
3. "White Lines (Don't Don't Do It)" - Grandmaster Flash and Mellie Mel - This is probably the only song in the history of ever that is both (a) blatantly advocating against drug use and (b) cool as all hell.
4. "Yellow Submarine" - The Beatles - "In the TOOOOOOOWWWWWN..." You hear those words emanating from master vocalist Ringo Starr, and you know it's time to grab hands and sit Indian-style on the floor and sing along. It's by far the best children's song for that's also listenable for adults. Also evidence that the Beatles were taking drugs. Not because of the lyrics, but because they let Ringo sing.*
5. "Black Bugs" - Regurgitator - I'm guessing that everyone who's reading this hasn't heard this song before. So here's a Youtube video link. Though it was made in 1997 and the band is an obscure Aussie alternative group, it kicks ass. It's very New Wave, or so it seems to me, with the synthesizer and punchy bass line. Or maybe I can't get over the last list we did. Anyway, the song is about wasting your life playing video games. I can both relate, as I do play video games on occasion, and rejoice, as I don't devote my life to them.
Honorable mention: "Yellow" - Coldplay, "O Green World" - Gorillaz, "Back In Black" - AC/DC, "Black Magic Woman" - Santana, "Red Dust" - Zero 7 (I really, really wanted to put this on the list), "Red House" - Jimi Hendrix, "Red Rain" - Peter Gabriel, "Orange Crush" - R.E.M., "White Light/White Heat" - The Velvet Underground (Already on one of Rob's Top 5's), "Behind Blue Eyes" - The Who, "Blue" - Yoko Kanno, "Mr. Blue Sky" - Electric Light Orchestra
* - joke stolen from Bill Hicks.
Ryan's Top 5:
"Golden Brown" and "White Lines"...well played sir. I'll go with five different ones, but these would probably make my list.
1. "The Village Green Preservation Society" - The Kinks - If there was a better poem crafted last century, I haven't heard of it. "We are the Sherlock Holmes English-speaking vernacular / Help save Fu Manchu, Moriarty and Dracula!" You try rhyming 'vernacular,' gun-slinger. This could be the song that inspired 1,000 fantasy baseball team names...if any of them fit the length. Believe me, I've tried.
2. "Mr. Blue Sky" - ELO - This for me is an ultimate Happy Song, as evidenced by the fact that I put it on my renowned "Graduation Joy" CD. Brilliance.
3. "White Light/White Heat" - The Velvet Underground - This is also one of the best Side A Track 1's, along with "Radiation Ruling the Nation" by Massive Attack. Cough. Ironically, I may be the only person who prefers "Who loves the Sun?" (one of my all-time favorite songs), which was also a Side A Track 1--and in "High Fidelity."
4. "White Riot" - The Clash - This would have been a pretty cool concert.
5. "Paint It, Black" - The Rolling Stones - In retrospect, seeing songs 3-5 behind song #2 seems a bit odd... Fortunately for ELO I am a lazy, lazy man. Anyway, this song deserves all the accolades it can get, but I'll add one: it's the only song on "Singstar Rocks!" that I am good at. (Actually, is that an accolade?)
Honorables: "Golden Brown" by The Stranglers, "White Lines (Don't Do It)," "Supermassive Black Hole" by Muse, "White Room" by Cream, "Golden Years" by David Bowie, "Purple Haze" by Jimi Hendrix Experience, and any number of songs I am probably forgetting.
Tim's Top 5:
I had initially had five different colors in my list. Screw that.
1. Bob Dylan - Tangled Up In Blue - It's one of my favorite songs ever, I've discussed it before, I have little to add except that the word blue definitely fits this category.
2. Muse - Supermassive Black Hole - Yeah, I love this song too much for words. It's one of the few songs I have to blare. The music is fantastic and begs to be played at supermassive volumes and the lyrics also demand to be belted in the car.
3. Rolling Stones - Paint It, Black - It's one of my favorite tracks on Guitar Hero III, it's a song that has a title involving a comma, it's a perfect track for the Full Metal Jacket soundtrack, and aside from possibly the electric version of Layla, I can think of no song that more accurately defines and somehow personifies classic rock.
4. CCR - Green River - This is one of the songs that defines CCR, and frankly, it defines CCR as amazing. It's no "Fortunate Son", but that's about the only problem I have with it. It masters that down-home country feel that made CCR so readily accessible to people who aren't generally into rock.
5. The Cyrkle - Red Rubber Ball - It's one of my favorite 60s pop songs ever, even though it's embarrassingly simple and pretty juvenile. This wards "Pink Moon" off the list only because Red Rubber Ball is at least a bit semi-respectable because it's co-written by Paul Simon.
Honorable mention: Pearl Jam - Yellow Ledbetter - a non-album track that somehow still became a recognized song for alternative radio. I think it's better than anything that made the Ten album and I have a hard time believing it came from the same era of Pearl Jam; The Jayhawks - Blue, if I hadn't adopted the different color thing, this is #4 on the list.; Nick Drake - Pink Moon, George Baker Selection - Little Green Bag, R.E.M. - Orange Crush, Jimi Hendrix - Purple Haze, The Who - Behind Blue Eyes; Fountains of Wayne - Red Dragon Tattoo
Dan's Top 5:
1. "Golden Brown" - The Stranglers - The Stranglers released their first album in 1977 and were originally considered a punk group. I mean, just listen to "Peaches" and you'll wonder how they ever came up with a song this chill and... acoustic. On the other hand, the song is about heroin. To quote Wikipedia: "Many buyers were seemingly unaware of the meaning of the lyrics, which contain metaphorical references to heroin. This may have been further confused by different band members claiming that the song was about desertification, imperialism and as said in a recent interview, 'toast'."
2. "Little Red Corvette" - Prince - I don't know how you guys feel about Prince. Actually, let me rephrase that. I don't care how you guys feel about Prince. To me, this is probably the song that epitomizes the 80's. Any imagery that this song elicits has to take place at night, preferably in a big, extra-materialistic city.
3. "White Lines (Don't Don't Do It)" - Grandmaster Flash and Mellie Mel - This is probably the only song in the history of ever that is both (a) blatantly advocating against drug use and (b) cool as all hell.
4. "Yellow Submarine" - The Beatles - "In the TOOOOOOOWWWWWN..." You hear those words emanating from master vocalist Ringo Starr, and you know it's time to grab hands and sit Indian-style on the floor and sing along. It's by far the best children's song for that's also listenable for adults. Also evidence that the Beatles were taking drugs. Not because of the lyrics, but because they let Ringo sing.*
5. "Black Bugs" - Regurgitator - I'm guessing that everyone who's reading this hasn't heard this song before. So here's a Youtube video link. Though it was made in 1997 and the band is an obscure Aussie alternative group, it kicks ass. It's very New Wave, or so it seems to me, with the synthesizer and punchy bass line. Or maybe I can't get over the last list we did. Anyway, the song is about wasting your life playing video games. I can both relate, as I do play video games on occasion, and rejoice, as I don't devote my life to them.
Honorable mention: "Yellow" - Coldplay, "O Green World" - Gorillaz, "Back In Black" - AC/DC, "Black Magic Woman" - Santana, "Red Dust" - Zero 7 (I really, really wanted to put this on the list), "Red House" - Jimi Hendrix, "Red Rain" - Peter Gabriel, "Orange Crush" - R.E.M., "White Light/White Heat" - The Velvet Underground (Already on one of Rob's Top 5's), "Behind Blue Eyes" - The Who, "Blue" - Yoko Kanno, "Mr. Blue Sky" - Electric Light Orchestra
* - joke stolen from Bill Hicks.
Ryan's Top 5:
"Golden Brown" and "White Lines"...well played sir. I'll go with five different ones, but these would probably make my list.
1. "The Village Green Preservation Society" - The Kinks - If there was a better poem crafted last century, I haven't heard of it. "We are the Sherlock Holmes English-speaking vernacular / Help save Fu Manchu, Moriarty and Dracula!" You try rhyming 'vernacular,' gun-slinger. This could be the song that inspired 1,000 fantasy baseball team names...if any of them fit the length. Believe me, I've tried.
2. "Mr. Blue Sky" - ELO - This for me is an ultimate Happy Song, as evidenced by the fact that I put it on my renowned "Graduation Joy" CD. Brilliance.
3. "White Light/White Heat" - The Velvet Underground - This is also one of the best Side A Track 1's, along with "Radiation Ruling the Nation" by Massive Attack. Cough. Ironically, I may be the only person who prefers "Who loves the Sun?" (one of my all-time favorite songs), which was also a Side A Track 1--and in "High Fidelity."
4. "White Riot" - The Clash - This would have been a pretty cool concert.
5. "Paint It, Black" - The Rolling Stones - In retrospect, seeing songs 3-5 behind song #2 seems a bit odd... Fortunately for ELO I am a lazy, lazy man. Anyway, this song deserves all the accolades it can get, but I'll add one: it's the only song on "Singstar Rocks!" that I am good at. (Actually, is that an accolade?)
Honorables: "Golden Brown" by The Stranglers, "White Lines (Don't Do It)," "Supermassive Black Hole" by Muse, "White Room" by Cream, "Golden Years" by David Bowie, "Purple Haze" by Jimi Hendrix Experience, and any number of songs I am probably forgetting.
Tim's Top 5:
I had initially had five different colors in my list. Screw that.
1. Bob Dylan - Tangled Up In Blue - It's one of my favorite songs ever, I've discussed it before, I have little to add except that the word blue definitely fits this category.
2. Muse - Supermassive Black Hole - Yeah, I love this song too much for words. It's one of the few songs I have to blare. The music is fantastic and begs to be played at supermassive volumes and the lyrics also demand to be belted in the car.
3. Rolling Stones - Paint It, Black - It's one of my favorite tracks on Guitar Hero III, it's a song that has a title involving a comma, it's a perfect track for the Full Metal Jacket soundtrack, and aside from possibly the electric version of Layla, I can think of no song that more accurately defines and somehow personifies classic rock.
4. CCR - Green River - This is one of the songs that defines CCR, and frankly, it defines CCR as amazing. It's no "Fortunate Son", but that's about the only problem I have with it. It masters that down-home country feel that made CCR so readily accessible to people who aren't generally into rock.
5. The Cyrkle - Red Rubber Ball - It's one of my favorite 60s pop songs ever, even though it's embarrassingly simple and pretty juvenile. This wards "Pink Moon" off the list only because Red Rubber Ball is at least a bit semi-respectable because it's co-written by Paul Simon.
Honorable mention: Pearl Jam - Yellow Ledbetter - a non-album track that somehow still became a recognized song for alternative radio. I think it's better than anything that made the Ten album and I have a hard time believing it came from the same era of Pearl Jam; The Jayhawks - Blue, if I hadn't adopted the different color thing, this is #4 on the list.; Nick Drake - Pink Moon, George Baker Selection - Little Green Bag, R.E.M. - Orange Crush, Jimi Hendrix - Purple Haze, The Who - Behind Blue Eyes; Fountains of Wayne - Red Dragon Tattoo
Thursday, June 5, 2008
Top 5 Concerts You've Been To
Straightforward and strictly self-referential for a change of pace.
Ryan's Top Five
1. Badly Drawn Boy, Liberty Hall, Lawrence, KS (Oct. 2004) - When I put down all the concerts I've been to in print (not as many as I had thought), this one is far and away the best. First off, you have to factor in this--what are the fucking odds of A) Badly Drawn Boy coming to America to tour, B) Badly Drawn Boy coming to Lawrence, KS, and C) Badly Drawn Boy coming to my favorite venue in the world? Secondly, I definitely got my money's worth; he played his best album, "One Plus One Is One" (which had just been released), in its entirety, then they took a break, then he came back and did a full concert of older songs, then he came back for an encore. The show lasted almost four hours. By the encore, he was drunk and ranting about the upcoming election and George W. Bush. And to top it off, the opener was good, an indie band from England called Adem. My favorite concert, bar none.
2. Duran Duran, NTelos Pavilion, Portsmouth, VA (Aug. 2005) - This was easily the biggest concert I've ever been to, and Duran Duran did not remotely disappoint. They opened with "Friends of Mine," then Simon Le Bon says hello to the crowd and screams, "IS ANYBODY HUNGRYYYYY?!" before they launch into "Hungry Like The Wolf." This strikes me as one of the coolest ways to begin a show, ever--give the public what they want. Adhering to this, they did just about every song you could want them to do, not letting their newer stuff overwhelm the act. This included my two favorites, "Come Undone" and "Ordinary World." And when he dedicated the latter to the military men and women overseas and their families left behind--Norfolk after all is a Navy town, and plenty of Navy folk were in the crowd--it actually wasn't cheesy, doubtless because the song itself is so fucking awesome. Downside: the opening act sucked. All in all though, great show.
3. Colin Meloy, Liberty Hall, Lawrence, KS (April 2008) - I was psyched for this concert but I'll admit I was a bit leery of an entirely acoustic set. Fortunately, this concert was pretty great, all told. He did plenty of "The Crane Wife," including kick-ass versions of "The Perfect Crime 2" and "O Valencia." He's a pretty good stand-up comedian to boot; at one point he said he didn't want to "get too footnotey, like some fucking David Foster Wallace novel." Finally, he finished by leading the crowd in a rollicking rendition (says I) of "The Mariner's Revenge Song."
4. Ben Folds Five, Sokol Auditorium, Omaha, NE (Oct. 1999) - The concert itself was great, but more than that, this was at 16 my First Real Concert I ever went to, you know, of music I had discovered on my own and had listened to religiously for two solid years. (See #5 for clarification of "First Real Concert.") They did a few songs from Reinhold Messner (released earlier that year) but focused primarily on Whatever And Ever Amen (one of my top 5 favorite albums) and their eponymous debut. Highlights included awesome renditions of "Philosophy," "One Angry Dwarf...," "Narcolepsy," and so on. It was all good. Side-note: Train was the opener, before they were big. I suppose I liked them then, or anyway I liked "Meet Virginia."
5. Hootie & the Blowfish, Some Nebraskan Ampitheatre, summer, I believe 1997 - OK, not the best of recollections about this one... though I know I still have the ticket stub somewhere. This, in all fairness, was the First Concert I ever went to, so I have to include it here. Actually, it's easy to laugh about Hootie & the Blowfish now, but... well OK, it was probably easy to do so then, but I was still 13 and only a few years removed from "Cracked Rear View." Hey, you know what, fuck you all, I like Hootie & the Blowfish.
All The Concerts I've Been To Follow (I am pretty sure I'm not forgetting any...):
Honorable Mentions:
- The Swell Season at the Uptown Theatre, KCMO (this is #6 if I were ranking them, great show)
- Ben Folds, the Lied Center (at KU, this was an awesome show and I suppose is tied for 6th)
- Ben Folds, Rufus Wainwright, Ben Lee at City Market, KCMO (would have been great if lightning didn't preclude Ben Lee entirely and persuade a skittish Rufus Wainwright to fly through his set)
- Ben Folds at some venue in Norfolk (Portside? Somethingerother? This is how much Hampton Roads is into Ben, my dad bought tickets for the three of us (him, me, Tory), we get there, and they're handing out free tickets at the door...Anyway, good show, but nothing particularly Top 5-worthy)
- Jurassic 5, Abe & Jake's in Lawrence (my only hip hop show)
- Ringo Starr and his All-Starr Band at the NTelos Pavilion in Portsmouth, VA (fun seeing a Beatle. Not quite as fun seeing members of Supertramp, ELP, et. al.)
- Nickel Creek at Liberty Hall (good concert, the music's not really my cup of tea, but still)
Dishonorable Mention:
- Tonic at Harbor View in Norfolk, VA (free concert...took forever for them to get onstage...after they performed about three songs we realized we didn't really give a shit about Tonic and left, which was enjoyable. They did have good barbecue, to be fair.)
Dan's Top 5:
1. Smashing Pumpkins, The Orange Peel, Asheville, NC (Jun. 30, 2007) - The Smashing Pumpkins did a residency for a little over a week in Asheville to promote Zeitgeist. I actually managed to get two tickets (a mere $20 each) out of I'm guessing 600 per show. The greatest thing about this concert was the venue. It's essentially the size of a school gym, so I got to stand about ten or fifteen feet away from Billy Corgan. Despite only beginning to get into Smashing Pumpkins at the time, it was still an amazing set. They played "Stand Inside Your Love," "Tonight, Tonight," and of course, "1979," which is a song that's in my Top 10, if not my Top 5 Songs of All Time. I Would have liked to see a show with the original lineup (i.e., with D'arcy and James) but let's not kid ourselves - Corgan is the band (for better or for worse - I blame him exclusively for Zeitgeist).
2. Gogol Bordello, The Lyric Theatre, Blacksburg, VA (October 18, 2007) - This one was a real surprise. I accepted a ticket after my roommate told me about the group, making this the first and only concert to go to where I didn't know any of the songs that would be played. For those who don't know of Gogol Bordello, the music is best described as Eastern European Gypsy Punk. Yeah, wrap your head around that. Anyway, I managed to squeeze into the front row, but of to the side, where there was no punk activity (minor crowd surfing and possible moshing took place) so I could focus on the performers. The concert ranks so high because I was right up front for an extremely high-energy show. All the performers were really into it, and I got to shake all their hands at the end of the set.
3. Radiohead, Verizon Wireless Amphitheater, Charlotte, NC (May 9, 2008) - I had to settle for lawn seats, but for fucking Radiohead, it didn't matter (I was in the front against the railing anyway). The band did twenty-four (24) songs and wrapped up by 11, letting me get back to Blacksburg by 2. It seemed fast at the time, but it was two-and-a-half hours. Naturally, they did their In Rainbows songs, but they also pulled a few tricks by playing songs like "Optmistic," "Exit Music (For a Film)" and "Planet Telex." The encore consisted of "Paranoid Android" and "Reckoner," and will probably be the best encore in the history of ever. My only complaint is that they didn't play any of my top three songs ("My Iron Lung," "No Surprises," "Fake Plastic Trees").
4. Rush, Verizon Wireless Amphitheater, Virginia Beach, VA (Jun. 22, 2007) - I've only been really into Rush for under a year, and this concert really made me a die-hard fan. I knew that each member of the trio was one of the best in the world at their instrument, but I wasn't expecting this level of awesomeness. I get to say I've seen a Neil Peart drum solo live, and that makes me happy. I didn't know but half of the songs, but one of the highlights was a clip of South Park introducing "Tom Sawyer." The band really has a good sense of humor. The encore was capped with "YYZ," which took it to a whole new level of kickass.
5. Sudflood XVIII, Top of the Stairs, Blacksburg, VA (Apr. 22, 2006) - I'm going to pull a fast one and include an all-day music fest that my former band, Rex Bedlam, played in. We were originally slated to play an hour and a half, but technical issues and other bands running over time shaved our set down to about half an hour to 45 minutes. The first song, our drummer broke his kick pedal, and the second song, our electric guitarist broke a string. However, we gave it our best and even managed to cover Zeppelin's "Black Dog." Afterwards, other visiting bands (all of which were good) gave us props during their sets. Pretty awesome. Oh yeah, we also got unlimited free beer for twelve hours.
Honorable Mentions (i.e., the rest of the concerts I've been to, ranked in descending order of greatness):
Muse w/ My Chemical Romance, Merriweather Post Pavilion, Columbia, MD - Muse fucking rule, but because they were openers, their set was a mere 45 minutes.
Red Hot Chili Peppers with Gnarls Barkley, John Paul Jones Arena, Charlottesville, VA - RHCP was really lackluster, as they played mostly newer songs (i.e., post-BSSM), but Gnarls Barkley was the shit. However, their bass was clipping because their sound levels were off, resulting in a non-ideal show.
The Last Dispatch, The Hatch Shell, Boston, MA - Dispatch's supposed final show ever. (They reunited recently at MSG for a series of benefit concerts.) Awesome music from a single band for three and a half hours, but way too many people, way too hot, and most of the fans were hippies.
ZZ Top, Ted Nugent, and Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Verizon Wireless Amphitheater, Virginia Beach, VA - This was my first concert ever, and I went with my dad (which, if you know my dad, is not an uncool thing to admit). It was pretty enjoyable, but Ted Nugent ruined his set for me when he avidly supported George W. Bush during some inter-song banter.
Carbon Leaf w/ Ben Lee, Burruss Hall Auditorium, Blacksburg, VA - I was in the second row for this one, and I'm a solid fan of Carbon Leaf. Ben Lee was pretty good too. I expect this to be the standard for an acceptable concert experience.
Sudflood XIX, Top of the Stairs, Blacksburg, VA - Overall, most of the bands were boring, but Carbon Leaf was there, and I found out that they did the show for free (proceeds this year went to the Hokie Spirit Memorial Fund). They also signed my copy of Echo Echo.
Ben Folds, Burruss Hall Auditorium, Blacksburg, VA - This concert makes me suspect that Ben Folds hates, for some reason, the state of Virginia, Virginia Tech or even me personally. He seemed really detached from the audience, and even forced us to listen to him start "Gracie" about five or six times because someone in the audience "woo"-ed in approval. (He neared completion of it twice, only to start it over.) What a douche.
O.A.R. w/ Michael Franti and Spearhead, Burruss Hall Auditorium, Blacksburg, VA - I think I was in the front row for this, but let's be honest, O.A.R. sucks. Spearhead was pretty cool, though.
Tim's Top 5:
Ryan jumped the gun on this one, I'm pretty sure the Springsteen show I'm going to 7/27/08 will be #1 and I suspect the Pearl Jam show (and maybe, god willing, R.E.M.?) in June may crack the list, so I was holding off.
1) 4/00 - Guided by Voices with Sense Field at The Sokol Auditorium, Omaha, NE - I was probably the only person watching Sense Field, but they became one of my favorite bands after the concert -- and shortly after the concert had to abandon their hopes of ever releasing their album with Warner Bros. and it became the abortive effort that was released on Nettwerk and scored them 15 minutes of fame with "Save Yourself". Then GbV put together a greatest hits concert that captured the era of GbV at its finest -- this was right after Do The Collapse, so they didn't have the stuff from Isolation Drills, but it led them to get the best of the Fading Captain Series and favor stuff from Alien Lanes and Bee Thousand instead of the most recent album. The only drawback is one that would follow GbV for years, their steadfast avoidance of material from Mag Earwhig!, which was and still is, my favorite GbV album hands down.
2) 6/13/03 - Pearl Jam with Idlewild at the Mid-American Center, Council Bluffs, IA - Bu$hleaguer on the Riot Act album...boring. Bu$hleaguer live -- played in the heart of Republican country -- unparalleled in awesomeness. This is the concert that made me think Riot Act was one of Pearl Jam's greatest albums, even though only me and four other people own it. I don't think I'm wrong. They closed with Rockin' in the Free World, which is definitely the chosen song to end Pearl Jam shows, they covered The Police's Driven to Tears, The Clash's "Know Your Rights" (both have since become favorites of mine) and unfortunately Crazy Mary (a song which I have no affection for). It was really an amazing show, no Katowice, Poland, but amazing nonetheless.
3) 7/28/07 - The Old 97's with Ha Ha Tonka at The Chameleon Club, Lancaster, PA - I'd seen the Old 97's the night before on the Rockin' on the River cruise in New York but discovered they had a show far closer to me the next day. They ended up playing three encores -- one with Rhett by himself playing a couple of solo songs and a cover of the Pixies' "Wave of Mutilation", then the band returned to join him for a couple more Old 97's tracks. After half the club had left, they came out and played two more songs, both of which were unrecognizable at the time. The venue was astounding for a middling college town in the middle of Amish country, and the crowd really seemed to know their work much more than the NYC crowd. Ha Ha Tonka was an entertaining enough band, more on the side of country than alt-country, but they waited at the back of the show to watch, which is the true sign of an opening act that deserves some respect. I've meant to get their album for a long time now. I should really get around to it. There were still a couple of songs I'd have killed for them to play (seriously, "Nite Club" and "If My Heart Were a Car" warrant playing), but it was an exhaustingly amazing show. I drove the long trip home having absolutely no regrets about seeing them for a second time in two days.
4) 4/06 - Franz Ferdinand and Death Cab For Cutie at Barton Hall, Ithaca, NY - The venue was awful for acoustics, I had absolutely nothing to drink (thank you, Cornell University), but the two acts were amazing. Franz Ferdinand went through the vast majority of their material, but still managed to hold things back that I'd forgotten were awesome; Death Cab played a good sampling of their material, even though I was unfamiliar with 90% of it at that point. I owned Plans within the week and have since developed an appreciation for their work as a whole.
5) 7/07 - The Police with Fiction Plane and the Fratellis at Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia, PA - Sure, it might as well have been pre-packaged, because The Police played only two sets during the entire reunion tour (Philadelphia warranted the long set at least), but they reminded me that there was a period before I was really sentient that Sting used to actually, you know, be kind of cool. And rock. They really put together a great show, the venue wasn't bad, and the beer flowed freely. Definitely one of the highlights of my employment thus far. You know, other than all the "law" stuff.
Honorable Mention: Ben Folds with The Divine Comedy at Seven Flags Event Center, Clive, IA - This was on the Ben Folds and a Piano tour after Rockin' the Suburbs, before he went off the musical deep end and became dead to me forever. The audience interaction seemed fresh (it wasn't, as you learned from the live album, it was all a scripted show with the same banter at every stop), and the music was awesome; Smashing Pumpkins with Fountains of Wayne at the Omaha Civic Auditorium, Omaha, NE - My first concert still warrants mention, although I knew so little of either of these bands' work when I went to the show that it really cut into the awesomenss; Snow Patrol with OK Go and Silversun Pickups at Tweeter Center, Camden, NJ - the headline act wasn't what I went to see, but they put together a good show, OK Go played most of their catalog and Silversun Pickups are as solid a second opening act as I could envision. Venue wasn't particularly good.
Ryan's Top Five
1. Badly Drawn Boy, Liberty Hall, Lawrence, KS (Oct. 2004) - When I put down all the concerts I've been to in print (not as many as I had thought), this one is far and away the best. First off, you have to factor in this--what are the fucking odds of A) Badly Drawn Boy coming to America to tour, B) Badly Drawn Boy coming to Lawrence, KS, and C) Badly Drawn Boy coming to my favorite venue in the world? Secondly, I definitely got my money's worth; he played his best album, "One Plus One Is One" (which had just been released), in its entirety, then they took a break, then he came back and did a full concert of older songs, then he came back for an encore. The show lasted almost four hours. By the encore, he was drunk and ranting about the upcoming election and George W. Bush. And to top it off, the opener was good, an indie band from England called Adem. My favorite concert, bar none.
2. Duran Duran, NTelos Pavilion, Portsmouth, VA (Aug. 2005) - This was easily the biggest concert I've ever been to, and Duran Duran did not remotely disappoint. They opened with "Friends of Mine," then Simon Le Bon says hello to the crowd and screams, "IS ANYBODY HUNGRYYYYY?!" before they launch into "Hungry Like The Wolf." This strikes me as one of the coolest ways to begin a show, ever--give the public what they want. Adhering to this, they did just about every song you could want them to do, not letting their newer stuff overwhelm the act. This included my two favorites, "Come Undone" and "Ordinary World." And when he dedicated the latter to the military men and women overseas and their families left behind--Norfolk after all is a Navy town, and plenty of Navy folk were in the crowd--it actually wasn't cheesy, doubtless because the song itself is so fucking awesome. Downside: the opening act sucked. All in all though, great show.
3. Colin Meloy, Liberty Hall, Lawrence, KS (April 2008) - I was psyched for this concert but I'll admit I was a bit leery of an entirely acoustic set. Fortunately, this concert was pretty great, all told. He did plenty of "The Crane Wife," including kick-ass versions of "The Perfect Crime 2" and "O Valencia." He's a pretty good stand-up comedian to boot; at one point he said he didn't want to "get too footnotey, like some fucking David Foster Wallace novel." Finally, he finished by leading the crowd in a rollicking rendition (says I) of "The Mariner's Revenge Song."
4. Ben Folds Five, Sokol Auditorium, Omaha, NE (Oct. 1999) - The concert itself was great, but more than that, this was at 16 my First Real Concert I ever went to, you know, of music I had discovered on my own and had listened to religiously for two solid years. (See #5 for clarification of "First Real Concert.") They did a few songs from Reinhold Messner (released earlier that year) but focused primarily on Whatever And Ever Amen (one of my top 5 favorite albums) and their eponymous debut. Highlights included awesome renditions of "Philosophy," "One Angry Dwarf...," "Narcolepsy," and so on. It was all good. Side-note: Train was the opener, before they were big. I suppose I liked them then, or anyway I liked "Meet Virginia."
5. Hootie & the Blowfish, Some Nebraskan Ampitheatre, summer, I believe 1997 - OK, not the best of recollections about this one... though I know I still have the ticket stub somewhere. This, in all fairness, was the First Concert I ever went to, so I have to include it here. Actually, it's easy to laugh about Hootie & the Blowfish now, but... well OK, it was probably easy to do so then, but I was still 13 and only a few years removed from "Cracked Rear View." Hey, you know what, fuck you all, I like Hootie & the Blowfish.
All The Concerts I've Been To Follow (I am pretty sure I'm not forgetting any...):
Honorable Mentions:
- The Swell Season at the Uptown Theatre, KCMO (this is #6 if I were ranking them, great show)
- Ben Folds, the Lied Center (at KU, this was an awesome show and I suppose is tied for 6th)
- Ben Folds, Rufus Wainwright, Ben Lee at City Market, KCMO (would have been great if lightning didn't preclude Ben Lee entirely and persuade a skittish Rufus Wainwright to fly through his set)
- Ben Folds at some venue in Norfolk (Portside? Somethingerother? This is how much Hampton Roads is into Ben, my dad bought tickets for the three of us (him, me, Tory), we get there, and they're handing out free tickets at the door...Anyway, good show, but nothing particularly Top 5-worthy)
- Jurassic 5, Abe & Jake's in Lawrence (my only hip hop show)
- Ringo Starr and his All-Starr Band at the NTelos Pavilion in Portsmouth, VA (fun seeing a Beatle. Not quite as fun seeing members of Supertramp, ELP, et. al.)
- Nickel Creek at Liberty Hall (good concert, the music's not really my cup of tea, but still)
Dishonorable Mention:
- Tonic at Harbor View in Norfolk, VA (free concert...took forever for them to get onstage...after they performed about three songs we realized we didn't really give a shit about Tonic and left, which was enjoyable. They did have good barbecue, to be fair.)
Dan's Top 5:
1. Smashing Pumpkins, The Orange Peel, Asheville, NC (Jun. 30, 2007) - The Smashing Pumpkins did a residency for a little over a week in Asheville to promote Zeitgeist. I actually managed to get two tickets (a mere $20 each) out of I'm guessing 600 per show. The greatest thing about this concert was the venue. It's essentially the size of a school gym, so I got to stand about ten or fifteen feet away from Billy Corgan. Despite only beginning to get into Smashing Pumpkins at the time, it was still an amazing set. They played "Stand Inside Your Love," "Tonight, Tonight," and of course, "1979," which is a song that's in my Top 10, if not my Top 5 Songs of All Time. I Would have liked to see a show with the original lineup (i.e., with D'arcy and James) but let's not kid ourselves - Corgan is the band (for better or for worse - I blame him exclusively for Zeitgeist).
2. Gogol Bordello, The Lyric Theatre, Blacksburg, VA (October 18, 2007) - This one was a real surprise. I accepted a ticket after my roommate told me about the group, making this the first and only concert to go to where I didn't know any of the songs that would be played. For those who don't know of Gogol Bordello, the music is best described as Eastern European Gypsy Punk. Yeah, wrap your head around that. Anyway, I managed to squeeze into the front row, but of to the side, where there was no punk activity (minor crowd surfing and possible moshing took place) so I could focus on the performers. The concert ranks so high because I was right up front for an extremely high-energy show. All the performers were really into it, and I got to shake all their hands at the end of the set.
3. Radiohead, Verizon Wireless Amphitheater, Charlotte, NC (May 9, 2008) - I had to settle for lawn seats, but for fucking Radiohead, it didn't matter (I was in the front against the railing anyway). The band did twenty-four (24) songs and wrapped up by 11, letting me get back to Blacksburg by 2. It seemed fast at the time, but it was two-and-a-half hours. Naturally, they did their In Rainbows songs, but they also pulled a few tricks by playing songs like "Optmistic," "Exit Music (For a Film)" and "Planet Telex." The encore consisted of "Paranoid Android" and "Reckoner," and will probably be the best encore in the history of ever. My only complaint is that they didn't play any of my top three songs ("My Iron Lung," "No Surprises," "Fake Plastic Trees").
4. Rush, Verizon Wireless Amphitheater, Virginia Beach, VA (Jun. 22, 2007) - I've only been really into Rush for under a year, and this concert really made me a die-hard fan. I knew that each member of the trio was one of the best in the world at their instrument, but I wasn't expecting this level of awesomeness. I get to say I've seen a Neil Peart drum solo live, and that makes me happy. I didn't know but half of the songs, but one of the highlights was a clip of South Park introducing "Tom Sawyer." The band really has a good sense of humor. The encore was capped with "YYZ," which took it to a whole new level of kickass.
5. Sudflood XVIII, Top of the Stairs, Blacksburg, VA (Apr. 22, 2006) - I'm going to pull a fast one and include an all-day music fest that my former band, Rex Bedlam, played in. We were originally slated to play an hour and a half, but technical issues and other bands running over time shaved our set down to about half an hour to 45 minutes. The first song, our drummer broke his kick pedal, and the second song, our electric guitarist broke a string. However, we gave it our best and even managed to cover Zeppelin's "Black Dog." Afterwards, other visiting bands (all of which were good) gave us props during their sets. Pretty awesome. Oh yeah, we also got unlimited free beer for twelve hours.
Honorable Mentions (i.e., the rest of the concerts I've been to, ranked in descending order of greatness):
Muse w/ My Chemical Romance, Merriweather Post Pavilion, Columbia, MD - Muse fucking rule, but because they were openers, their set was a mere 45 minutes.
Red Hot Chili Peppers with Gnarls Barkley, John Paul Jones Arena, Charlottesville, VA - RHCP was really lackluster, as they played mostly newer songs (i.e., post-BSSM), but Gnarls Barkley was the shit. However, their bass was clipping because their sound levels were off, resulting in a non-ideal show.
The Last Dispatch, The Hatch Shell, Boston, MA - Dispatch's supposed final show ever. (They reunited recently at MSG for a series of benefit concerts.) Awesome music from a single band for three and a half hours, but way too many people, way too hot, and most of the fans were hippies.
ZZ Top, Ted Nugent, and Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Verizon Wireless Amphitheater, Virginia Beach, VA - This was my first concert ever, and I went with my dad (which, if you know my dad, is not an uncool thing to admit). It was pretty enjoyable, but Ted Nugent ruined his set for me when he avidly supported George W. Bush during some inter-song banter.
Carbon Leaf w/ Ben Lee, Burruss Hall Auditorium, Blacksburg, VA - I was in the second row for this one, and I'm a solid fan of Carbon Leaf. Ben Lee was pretty good too. I expect this to be the standard for an acceptable concert experience.
Sudflood XIX, Top of the Stairs, Blacksburg, VA - Overall, most of the bands were boring, but Carbon Leaf was there, and I found out that they did the show for free (proceeds this year went to the Hokie Spirit Memorial Fund). They also signed my copy of Echo Echo.
Ben Folds, Burruss Hall Auditorium, Blacksburg, VA - This concert makes me suspect that Ben Folds hates, for some reason, the state of Virginia, Virginia Tech or even me personally. He seemed really detached from the audience, and even forced us to listen to him start "Gracie" about five or six times because someone in the audience "woo"-ed in approval. (He neared completion of it twice, only to start it over.) What a douche.
O.A.R. w/ Michael Franti and Spearhead, Burruss Hall Auditorium, Blacksburg, VA - I think I was in the front row for this, but let's be honest, O.A.R. sucks. Spearhead was pretty cool, though.
Tim's Top 5:
Ryan jumped the gun on this one, I'm pretty sure the Springsteen show I'm going to 7/27/08 will be #1 and I suspect the Pearl Jam show (and maybe, god willing, R.E.M.?) in June may crack the list, so I was holding off.
1) 4/00 - Guided by Voices with Sense Field at The Sokol Auditorium, Omaha, NE - I was probably the only person watching Sense Field, but they became one of my favorite bands after the concert -- and shortly after the concert had to abandon their hopes of ever releasing their album with Warner Bros. and it became the abortive effort that was released on Nettwerk and scored them 15 minutes of fame with "Save Yourself". Then GbV put together a greatest hits concert that captured the era of GbV at its finest -- this was right after Do The Collapse, so they didn't have the stuff from Isolation Drills, but it led them to get the best of the Fading Captain Series and favor stuff from Alien Lanes and Bee Thousand instead of the most recent album. The only drawback is one that would follow GbV for years, their steadfast avoidance of material from Mag Earwhig!, which was and still is, my favorite GbV album hands down.
2) 6/13/03 - Pearl Jam with Idlewild at the Mid-American Center, Council Bluffs, IA - Bu$hleaguer on the Riot Act album...boring. Bu$hleaguer live -- played in the heart of Republican country -- unparalleled in awesomeness. This is the concert that made me think Riot Act was one of Pearl Jam's greatest albums, even though only me and four other people own it. I don't think I'm wrong. They closed with Rockin' in the Free World, which is definitely the chosen song to end Pearl Jam shows, they covered The Police's Driven to Tears, The Clash's "Know Your Rights" (both have since become favorites of mine) and unfortunately Crazy Mary (a song which I have no affection for). It was really an amazing show, no Katowice, Poland, but amazing nonetheless.
3) 7/28/07 - The Old 97's with Ha Ha Tonka at The Chameleon Club, Lancaster, PA - I'd seen the Old 97's the night before on the Rockin' on the River cruise in New York but discovered they had a show far closer to me the next day. They ended up playing three encores -- one with Rhett by himself playing a couple of solo songs and a cover of the Pixies' "Wave of Mutilation", then the band returned to join him for a couple more Old 97's tracks. After half the club had left, they came out and played two more songs, both of which were unrecognizable at the time. The venue was astounding for a middling college town in the middle of Amish country, and the crowd really seemed to know their work much more than the NYC crowd. Ha Ha Tonka was an entertaining enough band, more on the side of country than alt-country, but they waited at the back of the show to watch, which is the true sign of an opening act that deserves some respect. I've meant to get their album for a long time now. I should really get around to it. There were still a couple of songs I'd have killed for them to play (seriously, "Nite Club" and "If My Heart Were a Car" warrant playing), but it was an exhaustingly amazing show. I drove the long trip home having absolutely no regrets about seeing them for a second time in two days.
4) 4/06 - Franz Ferdinand and Death Cab For Cutie at Barton Hall, Ithaca, NY - The venue was awful for acoustics, I had absolutely nothing to drink (thank you, Cornell University), but the two acts were amazing. Franz Ferdinand went through the vast majority of their material, but still managed to hold things back that I'd forgotten were awesome; Death Cab played a good sampling of their material, even though I was unfamiliar with 90% of it at that point. I owned Plans within the week and have since developed an appreciation for their work as a whole.
5) 7/07 - The Police with Fiction Plane and the Fratellis at Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia, PA - Sure, it might as well have been pre-packaged, because The Police played only two sets during the entire reunion tour (Philadelphia warranted the long set at least), but they reminded me that there was a period before I was really sentient that Sting used to actually, you know, be kind of cool. And rock. They really put together a great show, the venue wasn't bad, and the beer flowed freely. Definitely one of the highlights of my employment thus far. You know, other than all the "law" stuff.
Honorable Mention: Ben Folds with The Divine Comedy at Seven Flags Event Center, Clive, IA - This was on the Ben Folds and a Piano tour after Rockin' the Suburbs, before he went off the musical deep end and became dead to me forever. The audience interaction seemed fresh (it wasn't, as you learned from the live album, it was all a scripted show with the same banter at every stop), and the music was awesome; Smashing Pumpkins with Fountains of Wayne at the Omaha Civic Auditorium, Omaha, NE - My first concert still warrants mention, although I knew so little of either of these bands' work when I went to the show that it really cut into the awesomenss; Snow Patrol with OK Go and Silversun Pickups at Tweeter Center, Camden, NJ - the headline act wasn't what I went to see, but they put together a good show, OK Go played most of their catalog and Silversun Pickups are as solid a second opening act as I could envision. Venue wasn't particularly good.
Monday, December 10, 2007
Top 5 "Essential Album Artists"
Aha! Not so fast people...it's in quotes, therefore it's a defined term. Here's the definition:
Essential Album Artist -- You have to have every album. Period. There's something on every one of them that's worth owning, and not just easily replicated by buying a greatest hits comp and going to the concerts and singing along with 1/3 of the songs and being pissed they didn't play every hit. They have to have pushed out four albums -- not counting compilations -- and they have to do it with a band with the same name, you can't just declare Ben Folds a winner by counting his three actual albums with the eponymous Five and his two solo albums. Not that you would anyway. This list gives severe glory to those who lived fast. The Sex Pistols didn't last long enough, Bob Dylan lasted far far too long.
Tim's Top 5:
1) The Beatles - This is too easy. Every one of the thirteen albums is essential because they're all good, even if Please Please Me is too teeny-bop and The White Album is too admired by everyone. Best album: Abbey Road; Worst album: probably With The Beatles, but it still has absolute masterpiece songs on it, it's just also got Please Mr. Postman, which makes me weep inside.
2) Elliott Smith - Elliott Smith has a couple of careers, spending his early days with Kill Rock Stars recording quiet and rough albums, but eventually reaching the sprawling orchestral production of Figure 8. Not only are each of Elliott's albums essential, but he also made Good Will Hunting's soundtrack essential just by including an altered version of Between the Bars and Miss Misery. And, just for good measure, his album with Heatmiser -- Mic City Sons -- is even more essential than all the others, even though it doesn't count to the overall album total. Best album: Either/Or, though I love Figure 8; Worst Album: probably Elliott Smith, but it's still a great album.
3) Pearl Jam - If you like Pearl Jam, you understand that every album, every track becomes essential, because even if the album version of Bu$hleaguer sucks, you'll hear it on an official bootleg and realize it's the greatest song you've ever heard. They can release countless compilations, concert albums, and every time one hits my radar, I still consider buying it. I own them all and although I don't listen to them as much as I should, they're all essential. Best album: Yield; Worst album: Binaural was going to get my vote, then I remembered that they recorded Ten. Ten is the winner. It may have performed a great civic duty by bringing Pearl Jam to my 13-year old consciousness, but radio play has ruined its hope of being a respectable album.
4) The Clash - Sandinista! is a mess, but it's a mess that's still got a lot of value, it's just thinly sown among the 36 tracks, and it's being compared to two of the best albums anyone ever recorded. The Clash and London Calling should both be in the top 50 albums of all time, Best album: I'll say London Calling, because I know I'm supposed to, but I really think that The Clash might be the superior album in my own mind. And Give 'Em Enough Rope blows my mind too. Worst album: definitely Sandinista!, but it's well worth it for being the one person you know who owns the album and has actually listened to it.
5) The Old 97's - Helped in no small part by the small number of albums, each one has value. They run a number of genres in the time span, with the first two being definitely more dependent on country influences with the rock sounding more like Buddy Holly than the Beatleish pop influence that overruns Satellite Rides. In between, Wreck Your Life, Too Far to Care, and Fight Songs run the gamut, but each one has at least a half dozen commendable tracks. Worst album: I'm not enamored with Hitchhike to Rhome, which is too lo-fi country for me, but I think Drag It Up is their weakest effort, because it was an all too conscious effort to return to Hitchhike without the sense of youthful reckless innocence that made an innocuous debut acceptable.
Honorable Mention: Oasis - I don't own Standing on The Shoulder of Giants or What's The Story, but I could easily buy both; Bruce Springsteen - warrants serious mention just because he came surprisingly close for someone with a 35 year career, but Devils & Dust is just not a good album (Magic is, however), and I've never felt a need to own Human Touch or Lucky Town. R.E.M. - god, Reveal is awful. Shame on you, Michael Stipe.
Dan's Top 5:
1. Jimi Hendrix - You could argue that he released three albums as the Jimi Hendrix Experience and one with the Band of Gypsys, but really, all that truly changed was the bass player. There's no question where all the talent was. You shouldn't just buy Jimi's albums, you should have every song memorized. Any sort of "greatest hits" collection does not do the man justice, and "Band of Gypsys" is just as good as anything he did with the Experience. Four albums, no dead weight - the epitome of what this list should be.
2. Peter Gabriel - It's interesting to see how Peter's music has evolved from when he started as a solo artist to now. It's vastly different, but there was never any loss of quality. There really aren't any weak albums, unless you count his soundtracks. Assuming not, his second album was only a modest effort, but I'll forgive that since Peter Gabriel III was one of the best (and most underrated) albums ever.
3. The Beatles - I was going to try to come up with a different fifth artist, but I realized that (a) I couldn't think of anyone, and (b) the Beatles were good enough to be repeated in this list. I probably wholeheartedly agree with Tim here, and I'd like to add that it's because of the Fab Four that we have the standard of a band writing its own songs and consisting mainly of guitar, bass, and drums.
4. Radiohead - Not only do I have all albums, but I have all the B-sides as well. Weak albums include Pablo Honey, Kid A, and Amnesiac. Awesome albums include OK Computer, The Bends, and Hail to the Thief. I credit them with having re-established the album as a valid work of art. Now if only more than a handful of artists would put more effort into making complete albums.
5. The Police - Each one of the five studio albums they made has two big hits on it, as well as a handful of other good songs. Apart from Synchronicity, no album is phenomenal, but if you're going to listen to the Police, it's not that hard to just get all the albums.
Honorable Mention - Smashing Pumpkins, Blur. They would have made it were it not for one single album (Zeitgeist, Think Tank) in their catalogue. So much for last hurrahs. (Yes, I do know Blur are back together and recording a new album.) Also, Muse. Their first album - Showbiz - was decent, but not a must-have like their other three.
Ryan's Top Five
1. The Beatles - Best: Sgt. Pepper or Abbey Road. Worst: meh, why try.
2. Badly Drawn Boy - Man, I love Badly Drawn Boy. Best: One Plus One Is One. Worst: probably Born In The UK, though it's still good.
3. The Decemberists - Four studio albums, all excellent. Best: The Crane Wife (is one of the best albums of this decade).
4. John Lennon solo - Wings had a lot of crap. John Lennon did not. Best: Imagine or Plastic Ono Band, but I actually really like Double Fantasy, nuts to everyone else.
5. Harry Nilsson - All right, I don't own all of them, as some are difficult to locate. That said, I've heard tracks from all of them. Did I mention I love Harry Nilsson? Best: The Point!
Essential Album Artist -- You have to have every album. Period. There's something on every one of them that's worth owning, and not just easily replicated by buying a greatest hits comp and going to the concerts and singing along with 1/3 of the songs and being pissed they didn't play every hit. They have to have pushed out four albums -- not counting compilations -- and they have to do it with a band with the same name, you can't just declare Ben Folds a winner by counting his three actual albums with the eponymous Five and his two solo albums. Not that you would anyway. This list gives severe glory to those who lived fast. The Sex Pistols didn't last long enough, Bob Dylan lasted far far too long.
Tim's Top 5:
1) The Beatles - This is too easy. Every one of the thirteen albums is essential because they're all good, even if Please Please Me is too teeny-bop and The White Album is too admired by everyone. Best album: Abbey Road; Worst album: probably With The Beatles, but it still has absolute masterpiece songs on it, it's just also got Please Mr. Postman, which makes me weep inside.
2) Elliott Smith - Elliott Smith has a couple of careers, spending his early days with Kill Rock Stars recording quiet and rough albums, but eventually reaching the sprawling orchestral production of Figure 8. Not only are each of Elliott's albums essential, but he also made Good Will Hunting's soundtrack essential just by including an altered version of Between the Bars and Miss Misery. And, just for good measure, his album with Heatmiser -- Mic City Sons -- is even more essential than all the others, even though it doesn't count to the overall album total. Best album: Either/Or, though I love Figure 8; Worst Album: probably Elliott Smith, but it's still a great album.
3) Pearl Jam - If you like Pearl Jam, you understand that every album, every track becomes essential, because even if the album version of Bu$hleaguer sucks, you'll hear it on an official bootleg and realize it's the greatest song you've ever heard. They can release countless compilations, concert albums, and every time one hits my radar, I still consider buying it. I own them all and although I don't listen to them as much as I should, they're all essential. Best album: Yield; Worst album: Binaural was going to get my vote, then I remembered that they recorded Ten. Ten is the winner. It may have performed a great civic duty by bringing Pearl Jam to my 13-year old consciousness, but radio play has ruined its hope of being a respectable album.
4) The Clash - Sandinista! is a mess, but it's a mess that's still got a lot of value, it's just thinly sown among the 36 tracks, and it's being compared to two of the best albums anyone ever recorded. The Clash and London Calling should both be in the top 50 albums of all time, Best album: I'll say London Calling, because I know I'm supposed to, but I really think that The Clash might be the superior album in my own mind. And Give 'Em Enough Rope blows my mind too. Worst album: definitely Sandinista!, but it's well worth it for being the one person you know who owns the album and has actually listened to it.
5) The Old 97's - Helped in no small part by the small number of albums, each one has value. They run a number of genres in the time span, with the first two being definitely more dependent on country influences with the rock sounding more like Buddy Holly than the Beatleish pop influence that overruns Satellite Rides. In between, Wreck Your Life, Too Far to Care, and Fight Songs run the gamut, but each one has at least a half dozen commendable tracks. Worst album: I'm not enamored with Hitchhike to Rhome, which is too lo-fi country for me, but I think Drag It Up is their weakest effort, because it was an all too conscious effort to return to Hitchhike without the sense of youthful reckless innocence that made an innocuous debut acceptable.
Honorable Mention: Oasis - I don't own Standing on The Shoulder of Giants or What's The Story, but I could easily buy both; Bruce Springsteen - warrants serious mention just because he came surprisingly close for someone with a 35 year career, but Devils & Dust is just not a good album (Magic is, however), and I've never felt a need to own Human Touch or Lucky Town. R.E.M. - god, Reveal is awful. Shame on you, Michael Stipe.
Dan's Top 5:
1. Jimi Hendrix - You could argue that he released three albums as the Jimi Hendrix Experience and one with the Band of Gypsys, but really, all that truly changed was the bass player. There's no question where all the talent was. You shouldn't just buy Jimi's albums, you should have every song memorized. Any sort of "greatest hits" collection does not do the man justice, and "Band of Gypsys" is just as good as anything he did with the Experience. Four albums, no dead weight - the epitome of what this list should be.
2. Peter Gabriel - It's interesting to see how Peter's music has evolved from when he started as a solo artist to now. It's vastly different, but there was never any loss of quality. There really aren't any weak albums, unless you count his soundtracks. Assuming not, his second album was only a modest effort, but I'll forgive that since Peter Gabriel III was one of the best (and most underrated) albums ever.
3. The Beatles - I was going to try to come up with a different fifth artist, but I realized that (a) I couldn't think of anyone, and (b) the Beatles were good enough to be repeated in this list. I probably wholeheartedly agree with Tim here, and I'd like to add that it's because of the Fab Four that we have the standard of a band writing its own songs and consisting mainly of guitar, bass, and drums.
4. Radiohead - Not only do I have all albums, but I have all the B-sides as well. Weak albums include Pablo Honey, Kid A, and Amnesiac. Awesome albums include OK Computer, The Bends, and Hail to the Thief. I credit them with having re-established the album as a valid work of art. Now if only more than a handful of artists would put more effort into making complete albums.
5. The Police - Each one of the five studio albums they made has two big hits on it, as well as a handful of other good songs. Apart from Synchronicity, no album is phenomenal, but if you're going to listen to the Police, it's not that hard to just get all the albums.
Honorable Mention - Smashing Pumpkins, Blur. They would have made it were it not for one single album (Zeitgeist, Think Tank) in their catalogue. So much for last hurrahs. (Yes, I do know Blur are back together and recording a new album.) Also, Muse. Their first album - Showbiz - was decent, but not a must-have like their other three.
Ryan's Top Five
1. The Beatles - Best: Sgt. Pepper or Abbey Road. Worst: meh, why try.
2. Badly Drawn Boy - Man, I love Badly Drawn Boy. Best: One Plus One Is One. Worst: probably Born In The UK, though it's still good.
3. The Decemberists - Four studio albums, all excellent. Best: The Crane Wife (is one of the best albums of this decade).
4. John Lennon solo - Wings had a lot of crap. John Lennon did not. Best: Imagine or Plastic Ono Band, but I actually really like Double Fantasy, nuts to everyone else.
5. Harry Nilsson - All right, I don't own all of them, as some are difficult to locate. That said, I've heard tracks from all of them. Did I mention I love Harry Nilsson? Best: The Point!
Monday, August 13, 2007
Top 5 Current Favorite Bands/Artists
Defined however you like, but within reason...though The Rolling Stones may technically tour again, for example, I wouldn't rate them here. (Not only for that reason, but you get the idea.) Ditto Paul McCartney. I guess what I'm trying to say is, no old folk. Ben Folds would probably be the oldest on my list.
P.S., Stole this idea from Tory, who had it a while back.
1. Badly Drawn Boy - It's actually kind of difficult for me to explain my love affair with Badly Drawn Boy. More than any other artist, he makes albums before songs. I listened to One Plus One Is One a few times and couldn't find many memorable singles, but upon repeated listens, I began to love every individual track for its contribution to the whole. My favorite songs: "Four Leaf Clover," "The Shining," "Minor Incident," "Something to Talk About," "Born in the UK," "Silent Sigh," "Fewer Words," et. al.
2. Muse - Feels wrong ranking them this low because they kick so much ass. I guess, if they follow Black Holes up with something close to as awesome, they might be my favorite band of all-time.
3. Ben Folds - In the long run I like Ben Folds more than almost everyone else, of course, but if I'm being truthful to the "current" point, I have to put him third.
4. The Decemberists - OK, now I feel comfortable ranking them, after legally (in an illegal sort of way) getting their albums online. I've listened to The Crane Wife in one of those patented ryan-obsessive sort of Musey, Badly Drawny Boyey-type ways lately. Everyone had successfully convinced me that they were lyrically talented, but what's taken me by surprise is their musicality. These songs rock--try listening to "The Perfect Crime 2" without jamming.
5. Sufjan Stevens - Narrowly defeats The Flaming Lips, probably because At War With The Mystics wasn't as good as Yoshimi (a really tall order). I'm in love with Illinoise. I've never thought of seriously using this adjective, but his lyrics really are "haunting." It takes some talent to pull off a mournful song about John Wayne Gacy and make it personally relevant ("And in my best behavior, I am really just like him / Look beneath the floorboards for the secrets I have hid").
Honorables: The Flaming Lips, Gnarls Barkley (like Muse, a good follow-up would affect their rank), Coldplay ("You know why you're gay? Because you like Coldplay."), Fiona Apple
Dan's Top 5:
I'm going to interpret this as both "bands that are active" as well as "bands that I've been listening to within the last month or so." That's the only way I'm going to be able to narrow it down to 5.
1. Muse - Dan's Musefest 2007 is about out of gas, as I've been listening to Muse for quite some time. However, with GH III coming out and featuring Knights of Cydonia, I will most likely again take up listening to them nonstop, while being quick to point out that "I was into them before GH III came out."
2. The Decemberists - Probably the band for which I have to do the most listening work, but I'm really looking forward to it. I only "know" about a handful of songs, but I've never heard one that I dislike.
3. Damon Albarn's Latest Project - I figure this includes Blur (recently reunited), Gorillaz, and The Good The Bad & The Queen. I've listened to every "artist," and they're all good. I'm looking forward to whatever he releases next, and I'm almost guaranteed to buy it without listening to it first (which is what I did for TGTB&TQ).
4. Belle & Sebastian - This is only based off one album, but it was good enough for me to probably get their next one, whenever it's released.
5. Starsailor - I have two albums, but in all honesty have only listened to three songs. Again, they're a band I like, but I just need ot work on getting to know them.
Honorable Mentions: Radiohead (only unranked because they've had no new album in a while), The Go! Team, Doves, Gnarls Barkley
Tim's Top 5:
Having now taken a solid nine months to respond to this, I have a little more hindsight to celebrate, but oh well. That said, I don't think my list will have changed. Since my initial list all involved bands who had put out fewer than three albums except The Old 97's, I've just decided to set that limit.
1. Franz Ferdinand - They may never release a third album, but I'm so enamored with the first two that they still make the top 5. They're British, they're good with writing lyrics and making references to things that make me feel British (ah, Terry Wogen, how you make me feel British)
2. OK Go - I love these guys. I don't care about the videos that got everyone into the band, it took me forever to appreciate them on any level, but now that I do, I'm hooked. Oh No is one of my favorite albums of the last decade, and their debut has a few songs that I consider indispensable. Throw in the connection to NPR and attempting to dethrone Bush...and I can't believe I'm putting them at 3.
3. Arctic Monkeys - Both their debut album and the follow up are dynamite albums and they've already mastered the art of the non-album single with "Leave Before the Lights Come On". They're not strictly a singles band, which makes them absolutely essential to this list.
4. The Killers - All right, I gave up on Sam's Town, only to come around and find it to be a masterpiece, even if it's not Hot Fuss. Sawdust was underwhelming, but they're a young band to be putting out a B-sides disc, and it still has some very solid material. Hot Fuss is one of the most consistently great albums of the decade and Sam's Town has some indispensable tracks, including the title track and Bones.
5. Nine Black Alps - Their first album is a masterpiece, one of the best things Rob Schnapf has ever done, and he's one of the greatest producers of all time (see earlier list). The second album is less wonderful, but still quite good.
Honorable mention: The Decemberists have put out more than three, hence they don't get #5, but they still should count. Kanye West, though he loses me more with each album. The Bravery's last album would get mention, but I didn't think much of their debut. Interpol interests me. The bands I would have put in here don't seem "current" enough -- The Old 97's are almost as old as Pearl Jam, Jay-Z is old, Muse isn't that old, but they've put out five albums, Death Cab is pretty vintage, even if I didn't get into them until Plans.
P.S., Stole this idea from Tory, who had it a while back.
1. Badly Drawn Boy - It's actually kind of difficult for me to explain my love affair with Badly Drawn Boy. More than any other artist, he makes albums before songs. I listened to One Plus One Is One a few times and couldn't find many memorable singles, but upon repeated listens, I began to love every individual track for its contribution to the whole. My favorite songs: "Four Leaf Clover," "The Shining," "Minor Incident," "Something to Talk About," "Born in the UK," "Silent Sigh," "Fewer Words," et. al.
2. Muse - Feels wrong ranking them this low because they kick so much ass. I guess, if they follow Black Holes up with something close to as awesome, they might be my favorite band of all-time.
3. Ben Folds - In the long run I like Ben Folds more than almost everyone else, of course, but if I'm being truthful to the "current" point, I have to put him third.
4. The Decemberists - OK, now I feel comfortable ranking them, after legally (in an illegal sort of way) getting their albums online. I've listened to The Crane Wife in one of those patented ryan-obsessive sort of Musey, Badly Drawny Boyey-type ways lately. Everyone had successfully convinced me that they were lyrically talented, but what's taken me by surprise is their musicality. These songs rock--try listening to "The Perfect Crime 2" without jamming.
5. Sufjan Stevens - Narrowly defeats The Flaming Lips, probably because At War With The Mystics wasn't as good as Yoshimi (a really tall order). I'm in love with Illinoise. I've never thought of seriously using this adjective, but his lyrics really are "haunting." It takes some talent to pull off a mournful song about John Wayne Gacy and make it personally relevant ("And in my best behavior, I am really just like him / Look beneath the floorboards for the secrets I have hid").
Honorables: The Flaming Lips, Gnarls Barkley (like Muse, a good follow-up would affect their rank), Coldplay ("You know why you're gay? Because you like Coldplay."), Fiona Apple
Dan's Top 5:
I'm going to interpret this as both "bands that are active" as well as "bands that I've been listening to within the last month or so." That's the only way I'm going to be able to narrow it down to 5.
1. Muse - Dan's Musefest 2007 is about out of gas, as I've been listening to Muse for quite some time. However, with GH III coming out and featuring Knights of Cydonia, I will most likely again take up listening to them nonstop, while being quick to point out that "I was into them before GH III came out."
2. The Decemberists - Probably the band for which I have to do the most listening work, but I'm really looking forward to it. I only "know" about a handful of songs, but I've never heard one that I dislike.
3. Damon Albarn's Latest Project - I figure this includes Blur (recently reunited), Gorillaz, and The Good The Bad & The Queen. I've listened to every "artist," and they're all good. I'm looking forward to whatever he releases next, and I'm almost guaranteed to buy it without listening to it first (which is what I did for TGTB&TQ).
4. Belle & Sebastian - This is only based off one album, but it was good enough for me to probably get their next one, whenever it's released.
5. Starsailor - I have two albums, but in all honesty have only listened to three songs. Again, they're a band I like, but I just need ot work on getting to know them.
Honorable Mentions: Radiohead (only unranked because they've had no new album in a while), The Go! Team, Doves, Gnarls Barkley
Tim's Top 5:
Having now taken a solid nine months to respond to this, I have a little more hindsight to celebrate, but oh well. That said, I don't think my list will have changed. Since my initial list all involved bands who had put out fewer than three albums except The Old 97's, I've just decided to set that limit.
1. Franz Ferdinand - They may never release a third album, but I'm so enamored with the first two that they still make the top 5. They're British, they're good with writing lyrics and making references to things that make me feel British (ah, Terry Wogen, how you make me feel British)
2. OK Go - I love these guys. I don't care about the videos that got everyone into the band, it took me forever to appreciate them on any level, but now that I do, I'm hooked. Oh No is one of my favorite albums of the last decade, and their debut has a few songs that I consider indispensable. Throw in the connection to NPR and attempting to dethrone Bush...and I can't believe I'm putting them at 3.
3. Arctic Monkeys - Both their debut album and the follow up are dynamite albums and they've already mastered the art of the non-album single with "Leave Before the Lights Come On". They're not strictly a singles band, which makes them absolutely essential to this list.
4. The Killers - All right, I gave up on Sam's Town, only to come around and find it to be a masterpiece, even if it's not Hot Fuss. Sawdust was underwhelming, but they're a young band to be putting out a B-sides disc, and it still has some very solid material. Hot Fuss is one of the most consistently great albums of the decade and Sam's Town has some indispensable tracks, including the title track and Bones.
5. Nine Black Alps - Their first album is a masterpiece, one of the best things Rob Schnapf has ever done, and he's one of the greatest producers of all time (see earlier list). The second album is less wonderful, but still quite good.
Honorable mention: The Decemberists have put out more than three, hence they don't get #5, but they still should count. Kanye West, though he loses me more with each album. The Bravery's last album would get mention, but I didn't think much of their debut. Interpol interests me. The bands I would have put in here don't seem "current" enough -- The Old 97's are almost as old as Pearl Jam, Jay-Z is old, Muse isn't that old, but they've put out five albums, Death Cab is pretty vintage, even if I didn't get into them until Plans.
Sunday, August 5, 2007
Top 5 Surviving Bands
This list is of the best bands that have carried on with good music after one or more of their founders left the band for one of a myriad of reasons (e.g. creative differences, solo ambitions, or death). To give you a good example of what I'm after, I'm not going to be listing Weezer on this list, as in my opinion, all their good music came before Matt Sharp left following Pinkerton. Similarly, the Who never recovered from losing Kieth Moon. For the sake of history, I'll also list who left the bands and why.
Dan's Top 5:
1. Pink Floyd (Syd Barrett, mental problems and drug use) - Pink Floyd is probably the oddest choice I could make, as a majority of their success (both commercially and artistically) comes from songs that were almost directly related to Syd Barrett. So, in essence, the Barrett split defined the band. The most notable of these songs, in my opinion, is the epic "Shine On You Crazy Diamond."
2. Duran Duran (Roger Taylor, retirement, and Andy Taylor, solo career) - In my opinion, the New Duran Duran trio made one of the best pop albums of the 90's in the form of The Wedding Album. Even though the rest of their work is sub-par when compared to before the split, "Come Undone" and "Ordinary World" are just too good, not to mention "Too Much Information." The band would reunite in 2005 for one album before Andy left again in 2006.
3. Genesis (Peter Gabriel, brilliant solo career, Steve Hackett, creative differences) - Really, though this band went through tons of lineup changes, there are two distinct eras - The one with Collins, Rutherford, and Banks, and the earlier one that also included Gabriel and Hackett. The five-member Genesis was extremely artistic, Theatrical Victorian Prog Rock, while the three-member Genesis was the band that produced great 80's pop (see Invisible Touch). Both were amazing, so the band deserves this spot.
4. Van Halen (David Lee Roth, solo career) - The reasons why Diamond Dave split are still debated, but Sammy Hagar took over and led the band (or followed Eddie Van Halen's lead) into more pop-oriented waters. The thing is, it was still good music. 5150 was the first Hagar album as well as their first #1 album, and deservedly so. Gary Cherone sucked, though.
5. AC/DC (Bon Scott, death) - After Brian Johnson joined, they released Back in Black partially in tribute to Bon scott, and that went on to be one of the best-selling albums of all time. However, nothing apart from "Thunderstruck" has really been too good since.
Honorable mentions: The Rolling Stones (I'm sure someone else will put them, so I wasn't worried), The Yardbirds, Smashing Pumpkins
Ryan's Top Five
1. Red Hot Chili Peppers - This is the only band that came to mind at first, so I'll go with it. They lost Hillel Slovak and then went on to produce some of the best music of the (early-mid) 90s. Tory and I, I'm pretty sure, are maybe the only two people who like One Hot Minute more than Blood Sugar Sex Magik.
2. The Flaming Lips - Um, they had quite a few members over the years before they made their two best albums, The Soft Bulletin, and Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots.
3. The Verve - Had a lot of turmoil before Urban Hymns, which, as I pointed previously, is one of the best albums of the 90s. Of course, they've never been as good since, but still. Actually, upon further review, the band broke up before this album, then guitarist Nick McCabe returned to record this album, and then they broke up again. So, I'm keeping it here, because the spirit of turmoil was so determined and admirable.
4. AC/DC - See Dan's entry, Back in Black was by far their best.
5. Pink Floyd - I slot them this low because I really like Syd Barrett's stuff.
I'm out.
Tim's Top 5:
1. Guided by Voices - (Tobin Sprout, Jim Pollard, Greg Demos, Jim McPherson...everyone who was ever in the band aside from Bob Pollard at some point...) This band went through dozens of lineups, but at the core, it remained solid, so that my favorite album of GbV's featured a lineup that would appear on no others (though Doug Gillard remained an integral part until the end).
2. The Ramones - (I can't go through the whole list, I'm not that much of a fan) There were eight of them, their music is, to me, relatively indistinguishable for most of their existence, I don't long for the presence of any particular members of the Ramones. This is all I have to say about the Ramones right now.
3. Pearl Jam - (a Spinal Tap-ish collection of drummers -- Dave Krusen, Matt Chamberlain, Dave Abbruzzese, Jack Irons -- a popular mention on this list) - Granted, it's a drummer, few bands (Zeppelin, The Who) would have been brought down by the loss of a drummer. That said, it's also a ton of drummers. And it's had no impact. Ten is still Pearl Jam's worst album, Matt Cameron is their best drummer, although Jack Irons was certainly sufficient.
4. Oasis - (Tony McCarroll after Definitely Maybe, Bonehead and Guigsy after Be Here Now, Alan White after Heathen Chemistry) -- Again, two of these were drummers, but it counts. They're not a great band anymore, but their albums continue to be better than they'll get credit for from the jaded Americans who seem to have grown skeptical of British acts. Heathen Chemistry and Don't Believe the Truth are both far better than advertised, and Standing on the Shoulder of Giants is a better album than anyone really remembers.
5. OK Go - (Andy Duncan, this is purely theoretical) Duncan left after they finished recording Oh No, so his replacement has not appeared on any albums, but they were good live after Duncan left, so I therefore can conclude that his loss will be negligible. I really have no contribution to offer to this Top 5 list whatsoever.
Frankly, I'd do far better with bands that utterly collapsed after a personnel shift (Chris Bell-less Big Star would top the list)
Dan's Top 5:
1. Pink Floyd (Syd Barrett, mental problems and drug use) - Pink Floyd is probably the oddest choice I could make, as a majority of their success (both commercially and artistically) comes from songs that were almost directly related to Syd Barrett. So, in essence, the Barrett split defined the band. The most notable of these songs, in my opinion, is the epic "Shine On You Crazy Diamond."
2. Duran Duran (Roger Taylor, retirement, and Andy Taylor, solo career) - In my opinion, the New Duran Duran trio made one of the best pop albums of the 90's in the form of The Wedding Album. Even though the rest of their work is sub-par when compared to before the split, "Come Undone" and "Ordinary World" are just too good, not to mention "Too Much Information." The band would reunite in 2005 for one album before Andy left again in 2006.
3. Genesis (Peter Gabriel, brilliant solo career, Steve Hackett, creative differences) - Really, though this band went through tons of lineup changes, there are two distinct eras - The one with Collins, Rutherford, and Banks, and the earlier one that also included Gabriel and Hackett. The five-member Genesis was extremely artistic, Theatrical Victorian Prog Rock, while the three-member Genesis was the band that produced great 80's pop (see Invisible Touch). Both were amazing, so the band deserves this spot.
4. Van Halen (David Lee Roth, solo career) - The reasons why Diamond Dave split are still debated, but Sammy Hagar took over and led the band (or followed Eddie Van Halen's lead) into more pop-oriented waters. The thing is, it was still good music. 5150 was the first Hagar album as well as their first #1 album, and deservedly so. Gary Cherone sucked, though.
5. AC/DC (Bon Scott, death) - After Brian Johnson joined, they released Back in Black partially in tribute to Bon scott, and that went on to be one of the best-selling albums of all time. However, nothing apart from "Thunderstruck" has really been too good since.
Honorable mentions: The Rolling Stones (I'm sure someone else will put them, so I wasn't worried), The Yardbirds, Smashing Pumpkins
Ryan's Top Five
1. Red Hot Chili Peppers - This is the only band that came to mind at first, so I'll go with it. They lost Hillel Slovak and then went on to produce some of the best music of the (early-mid) 90s. Tory and I, I'm pretty sure, are maybe the only two people who like One Hot Minute more than Blood Sugar Sex Magik.
2. The Flaming Lips - Um, they had quite a few members over the years before they made their two best albums, The Soft Bulletin, and Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots.
3. The Verve - Had a lot of turmoil before Urban Hymns, which, as I pointed previously, is one of the best albums of the 90s. Of course, they've never been as good since, but still. Actually, upon further review, the band broke up before this album, then guitarist Nick McCabe returned to record this album, and then they broke up again. So, I'm keeping it here, because the spirit of turmoil was so determined and admirable.
4. AC/DC - See Dan's entry, Back in Black was by far their best.
5. Pink Floyd - I slot them this low because I really like Syd Barrett's stuff.
I'm out.
Tim's Top 5:
1. Guided by Voices - (Tobin Sprout, Jim Pollard, Greg Demos, Jim McPherson...everyone who was ever in the band aside from Bob Pollard at some point...) This band went through dozens of lineups, but at the core, it remained solid, so that my favorite album of GbV's featured a lineup that would appear on no others (though Doug Gillard remained an integral part until the end).
2. The Ramones - (I can't go through the whole list, I'm not that much of a fan) There were eight of them, their music is, to me, relatively indistinguishable for most of their existence, I don't long for the presence of any particular members of the Ramones. This is all I have to say about the Ramones right now.
3. Pearl Jam - (a Spinal Tap-ish collection of drummers -- Dave Krusen, Matt Chamberlain, Dave Abbruzzese, Jack Irons -- a popular mention on this list) - Granted, it's a drummer, few bands (Zeppelin, The Who) would have been brought down by the loss of a drummer. That said, it's also a ton of drummers. And it's had no impact. Ten is still Pearl Jam's worst album, Matt Cameron is their best drummer, although Jack Irons was certainly sufficient.
4. Oasis - (Tony McCarroll after Definitely Maybe, Bonehead and Guigsy after Be Here Now, Alan White after Heathen Chemistry) -- Again, two of these were drummers, but it counts. They're not a great band anymore, but their albums continue to be better than they'll get credit for from the jaded Americans who seem to have grown skeptical of British acts. Heathen Chemistry and Don't Believe the Truth are both far better than advertised, and Standing on the Shoulder of Giants is a better album than anyone really remembers.
5. OK Go - (Andy Duncan, this is purely theoretical) Duncan left after they finished recording Oh No, so his replacement has not appeared on any albums, but they were good live after Duncan left, so I therefore can conclude that his loss will be negligible. I really have no contribution to offer to this Top 5 list whatsoever.
Frankly, I'd do far better with bands that utterly collapsed after a personnel shift (Chris Bell-less Big Star would top the list)
Friday, August 3, 2007
Top 5 Songs I Bet You've Never Heard Before
So, this is apparently pretty tricky, but it's a testament to people like me who love it when they're "insiders" - people you turn to when you want to hear something new and good. Feel free to comment if you've actually heard anything that anyone else posts.
Dan's Top 5:
The Green and Yellow TV - The Wolves Are Out Tonight - I'm actually pretty sure that less than a thousand people know of this band. I stumbled onto a CD of theirs, ordered it, and this was the first track, and it sounds a tad like if the Beach Boys wanted to do Alternative music.
New Order - Regret - My biggest risk here is Tim, as New Order is one of the Killers' main influences, and this was a single. Nonetheless, the song is too good to be left out of this list. Arguably the last great song of the 80's, as it was released in 1989 and sounds really, really good. It could even be released today, and people might mistake it for a Killers song.
Stellastarr* - Arlington Queen - Actually a single that hasn't appeared on an album. It was good enough to stand on its own. The chorus really rocks, and is the lone reason I picked this song.
Starsailor - Silence is Easy - Phil Spector produced this song, but split after creative differences with the band for the rest of the album. This is one of the best songs on the album (of the same name), apart from "Four To The Floor."
Liquido - Narcotic - I heard this one over in Ireland. It may also be a risk, but I think it's one of those songs that's fairly big in Europe that no one has heard of here. I still remember being shunned for not knowing who Robbie Williams was.
Honorable Mention: Honest Bob and the Factory-to-Dealer Incentives - Hey
Ryan's Top Five
Stop me if you've heard these... I'm grasping for a couple of these. Everything I like, I share with people. Often to a fault.
1. Badly Drawn Boy - "Fewer Words" - His tribute to Elliot Smith, this song is short, simple, acoustic, and beautiful. Also, in concert he said, "That's my favorite song...ever."
2. Fiona Apple - "Extraordinary Machine" - This album is mesmerizing, and in this song she sounds most like a 40s era French singer...kind of. Also a really good lyricist. This song is Nilssonesque, which, in my world, is quite a compliment.
3. The New Pornographers - "Twin Cinema" - A rockin' little number. Sounds kind of like The Old 97s.
4. Adem - "Ringing In My Ear" - A British band, they opened for Badly Drawn Boy when we saw him a few years ago. Softer music, but lovely nonetheless. They're really good with bells, too.
5. Corn Mo - "Robert Holiday" - He opened for Ben Folds. You really have to see him to believe him, but it was a pretty cool show, and this song was his best. From wiki: "Corn Mo is a the stage name of Jon Cunningham, a Brooklyn-based musician. Corn Mo sings, plays the accordion, keyboards, and sometimes performs as a one man band. His music style is a mixture of circus music, glam rock, and humorous novelty songs."
Tim's Top 5:
I'm going to make the naive assumption that someone here has listened to Big Star #1 Record/Radio City as some point, hence bringing the diversity of not having five Big Star songs on the list. Here, I'm just including one song per band, since otherwise it'd easily be five Guided by Voices songs. I'm also being consciously mainstream here, since it's one thing to summon a track from the depths of humanity, it's another to open people's eyes to stuff they just barely overlooked.
1. Guided by Voices - I Am a Tree - While in most of my social circles, I could not make this claim, I dare say that no one on this blog has probably ever heard anything from Guided by Voices except for Teenage FBI (College Football 06) and probably Glad Girls (a putrid song co-opted by radio because it was so simple). I Am a Tree is ironically my favorite Guided by Voices song since it's the only song that didn't have any input from Robert Pollard, scion of GbV. Doug Gillard had recorded the song with Cobra Verde or Gem (I don't remember which), and when Pollard decided to grab Cobra Verde, make them his band and call them Guided by Voices, this track apparently caught his attention and got thrown onto the album. But it's as great a rock song as I've ever come across.
2. Sense Field - What Difference Does It Make? (The Smiths cover) - This is a fair assumption that only I've heard it, because as best as I worked to circulate it, it was from an EP titled (appropriately) Under the Radar recorded in advance of an album that was then never released by Warner Bros. I don't care much for the Smiths, but this I later learned was one of their best songs. That said, the cover sounds virtually nothing like The Smiths, hence my appreciation for it. The bad news...since Itunes seems to reject my MP3 transplants, I'll soon never hear it again.
3. Matthew Sweet - Do Ya (ELO cover) - See #2. I don't like ELO, though this song I do enjoy, the cover was from a warm up from Conan O'Brien, and although it's been released on an album (Live from 6A), there's little to no reason to own said album besides this song.
4. Groucho Marx - Omaha, Nebraska - It's a novelty song by Groucho Marx...what are the odds anyone in this state has heard this song besides me? Not good. But it's pure Groucho, a song I'd routinely make a standard if I ever reached dream job #1. If I ever try and go on the fool's errand of identifying favorite first lines, it's a shoo-in.
5. Pearl Jam - Bu$hleaguer (live in Council Bluffs, IA) - It's been released on a CD, and really I'm not cheating, since I'd accept any live recording, but Pearl Jam mostly eschewed from playing this anti-Bush diatribe on tour. It's a shame, because as dull and lifeless as it is on Riot Act, it's an absolute masterpiece that captures just why the song should have been a rallying cry were anyone still listening to Pearl Jam at this time.
Bare Jr. - The Most, any number of songs from Pavement, Ok Go - This Will Be Our Year (excluded since there's a dangerous chance Ryan's listened to Future Soundtrack for America, not because it's not great), Serge Gainsbourg - Je t'Aime Moi Non Plus - excluded since it's basically just recorded sex...which isn't to say it's not good music, Ramones - I Believe in Miracles - no one listened to the Ramones' new tracks in the 1980s...and they probably shouldn't have, except this one, New Radicals - Mother We Just Can't Get Enough
Tory's Top Five
I also share songs like Ryan said, and some of these are going to be on the assumption of the three other people on here and their taste in music ie knowable bands, but songs not heard by them.
1. Mum - "The Ghosts You Draw on my Back" - It's just an incredible song. Experimental and whatnot, with insanely creepy singing. If you can't get past the voice, then you probably won't like this band at all, but if you enjoy it, then it's incredible.
2. The Black Keys - "Don't Let the Sun Go Down" - Heavy blues inspired band that I did not hear until Black Snake Moan came out. This is the second list they appear on.
3. Explosions in the Sky - "Have you passed through this night" - An instrumental band, though this song is accompanied with a spoken word bit. Out of the few recent instrumental bands I've listened to, EITS ranks above them all, especially with this song.
4. Paolo Nutini - "These Streets" - He had a hit with New Shoes, but this song really shows what he can do as a songwriter. The basis that he is rather new is how he's made this list, but he performed at the world concert thing, so maybe this is a miss.
5. Bright Eyes - "Oh, you are the roots that sleep beneath my feet and hold the earth in place" - I am pretty sure none others on this board listen to Bright Eyes, so I used this song that is not on one of his own albums, but a compilation he did with Son, Ambulance. It is one of his best songs, and one of the first that I ever really heard.
Dan's Top 5:
The Green and Yellow TV - The Wolves Are Out Tonight - I'm actually pretty sure that less than a thousand people know of this band. I stumbled onto a CD of theirs, ordered it, and this was the first track, and it sounds a tad like if the Beach Boys wanted to do Alternative music.
New Order - Regret - My biggest risk here is Tim, as New Order is one of the Killers' main influences, and this was a single. Nonetheless, the song is too good to be left out of this list. Arguably the last great song of the 80's, as it was released in 1989 and sounds really, really good. It could even be released today, and people might mistake it for a Killers song.
Stellastarr* - Arlington Queen - Actually a single that hasn't appeared on an album. It was good enough to stand on its own. The chorus really rocks, and is the lone reason I picked this song.
Starsailor - Silence is Easy - Phil Spector produced this song, but split after creative differences with the band for the rest of the album. This is one of the best songs on the album (of the same name), apart from "Four To The Floor."
Liquido - Narcotic - I heard this one over in Ireland. It may also be a risk, but I think it's one of those songs that's fairly big in Europe that no one has heard of here. I still remember being shunned for not knowing who Robbie Williams was.
Honorable Mention: Honest Bob and the Factory-to-Dealer Incentives - Hey
Ryan's Top Five
Stop me if you've heard these... I'm grasping for a couple of these. Everything I like, I share with people. Often to a fault.
1. Badly Drawn Boy - "Fewer Words" - His tribute to Elliot Smith, this song is short, simple, acoustic, and beautiful. Also, in concert he said, "That's my favorite song...ever."
2. Fiona Apple - "Extraordinary Machine" - This album is mesmerizing, and in this song she sounds most like a 40s era French singer...kind of. Also a really good lyricist. This song is Nilssonesque, which, in my world, is quite a compliment.
3. The New Pornographers - "Twin Cinema" - A rockin' little number. Sounds kind of like The Old 97s.
4. Adem - "Ringing In My Ear" - A British band, they opened for Badly Drawn Boy when we saw him a few years ago. Softer music, but lovely nonetheless. They're really good with bells, too.
5. Corn Mo - "Robert Holiday" - He opened for Ben Folds. You really have to see him to believe him, but it was a pretty cool show, and this song was his best. From wiki: "Corn Mo is a the stage name of Jon Cunningham, a Brooklyn-based musician. Corn Mo sings, plays the accordion, keyboards, and sometimes performs as a one man band. His music style is a mixture of circus music, glam rock, and humorous novelty songs."
Tim's Top 5:
I'm going to make the naive assumption that someone here has listened to Big Star #1 Record/Radio City as some point, hence bringing the diversity of not having five Big Star songs on the list. Here, I'm just including one song per band, since otherwise it'd easily be five Guided by Voices songs. I'm also being consciously mainstream here, since it's one thing to summon a track from the depths of humanity, it's another to open people's eyes to stuff they just barely overlooked.
1. Guided by Voices - I Am a Tree - While in most of my social circles, I could not make this claim, I dare say that no one on this blog has probably ever heard anything from Guided by Voices except for Teenage FBI (College Football 06) and probably Glad Girls (a putrid song co-opted by radio because it was so simple). I Am a Tree is ironically my favorite Guided by Voices song since it's the only song that didn't have any input from Robert Pollard, scion of GbV. Doug Gillard had recorded the song with Cobra Verde or Gem (I don't remember which), and when Pollard decided to grab Cobra Verde, make them his band and call them Guided by Voices, this track apparently caught his attention and got thrown onto the album. But it's as great a rock song as I've ever come across.
2. Sense Field - What Difference Does It Make? (The Smiths cover) - This is a fair assumption that only I've heard it, because as best as I worked to circulate it, it was from an EP titled (appropriately) Under the Radar recorded in advance of an album that was then never released by Warner Bros. I don't care much for the Smiths, but this I later learned was one of their best songs. That said, the cover sounds virtually nothing like The Smiths, hence my appreciation for it. The bad news...since Itunes seems to reject my MP3 transplants, I'll soon never hear it again.
3. Matthew Sweet - Do Ya (ELO cover) - See #2. I don't like ELO, though this song I do enjoy, the cover was from a warm up from Conan O'Brien, and although it's been released on an album (Live from 6A), there's little to no reason to own said album besides this song.
4. Groucho Marx - Omaha, Nebraska - It's a novelty song by Groucho Marx...what are the odds anyone in this state has heard this song besides me? Not good. But it's pure Groucho, a song I'd routinely make a standard if I ever reached dream job #1. If I ever try and go on the fool's errand of identifying favorite first lines, it's a shoo-in.
5. Pearl Jam - Bu$hleaguer (live in Council Bluffs, IA) - It's been released on a CD, and really I'm not cheating, since I'd accept any live recording, but Pearl Jam mostly eschewed from playing this anti-Bush diatribe on tour. It's a shame, because as dull and lifeless as it is on Riot Act, it's an absolute masterpiece that captures just why the song should have been a rallying cry were anyone still listening to Pearl Jam at this time.
Bare Jr. - The Most, any number of songs from Pavement, Ok Go - This Will Be Our Year (excluded since there's a dangerous chance Ryan's listened to Future Soundtrack for America, not because it's not great), Serge Gainsbourg - Je t'Aime Moi Non Plus - excluded since it's basically just recorded sex...which isn't to say it's not good music, Ramones - I Believe in Miracles - no one listened to the Ramones' new tracks in the 1980s...and they probably shouldn't have, except this one, New Radicals - Mother We Just Can't Get Enough
Tory's Top Five
I also share songs like Ryan said, and some of these are going to be on the assumption of the three other people on here and their taste in music ie knowable bands, but songs not heard by them.
1. Mum - "The Ghosts You Draw on my Back" - It's just an incredible song. Experimental and whatnot, with insanely creepy singing. If you can't get past the voice, then you probably won't like this band at all, but if you enjoy it, then it's incredible.
2. The Black Keys - "Don't Let the Sun Go Down" - Heavy blues inspired band that I did not hear until Black Snake Moan came out. This is the second list they appear on.
3. Explosions in the Sky - "Have you passed through this night" - An instrumental band, though this song is accompanied with a spoken word bit. Out of the few recent instrumental bands I've listened to, EITS ranks above them all, especially with this song.
4. Paolo Nutini - "These Streets" - He had a hit with New Shoes, but this song really shows what he can do as a songwriter. The basis that he is rather new is how he's made this list, but he performed at the world concert thing, so maybe this is a miss.
5. Bright Eyes - "Oh, you are the roots that sleep beneath my feet and hold the earth in place" - I am pretty sure none others on this board listen to Bright Eyes, so I used this song that is not on one of his own albums, but a compilation he did with Son, Ambulance. It is one of his best songs, and one of the first that I ever really heard.
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
Top 5 Most Overrated Bands
Everyone knows that there are bands out there that are good, but that quite a few people put far too much stock into them. This is what this list is all about, those bands that we know don't deserve the praise they get. You can take it as you like, but this list is different than one such as worst bands. That is why you won't see someone like Britney Spears in here; while she is overrated, she has no musical ability to speak of so it is a travesty that she is even rated.
Tory's Top 5:
1. Nirvana - As I said, these bands are good. But come on, is Nirvana really that good. Yes, they inspired or pioneered the grunge genre, but just because they were the first doesn't mean that they are the greatest. See some lyrics such as Polly and Lake of Fire to see what I am talking about. I feel that their popularity was helped by the apparent suicide of Cobain, but alas, so was the musical community as the true musician (Grohl) was able to come about and form Foo Fighters, a far superior band.
2. Aerosmith - Joe Perry is an excellent guitarist. Steven Tyler is not an equally good singer. There are songs that I think really thrive, but then there are songs when Tyler does his rap-rock type singing that make me want to vomit ie Sweet Emotion.
3. U2 - I do not like this band that is on my list. They are trite. The Joshua Tree was not an epiphany in history of music. Plus their recent music has been some of the best
4. Green Day - Since Dookie, and really up til Dookie, they offered nothing close to the praise they earn. I suppose Insomniac had a decent playlist, and Nimrod had one good song, but with the recent pointless release of American Idiot, some of the worst political satire or commentary or whatever it is supposed to be, they have shown that the days in which they were a relatively accessible band are gone.
5. RHCP - Probably the best band that is on this list. I understand the majority of people liking them, but there are those that seem to equate this band to a modern day Zeppelin (perhaps not that high of quality, but within a nearby echelon at least.) Their music has seemed to get incredibly boring and repetitive; they did have their days though with Blood Sugar Sex Magic and One Hot Minute.
Dan's (Altered) Top 5:
1. Metallica - Pretty much nothing by this band is good. And they have the audacity to call themselves "metal?" I'm not as much of a metal fan as some friends of mine, but I do know that Metallica sucks when compared to some of the bands I've heard them play on their car stereos.
2. The Grateful Dead - I really haven't heard anything I like from them, and I have a predisposition to not liking "jam" bands (Dispatch excluded). How they got one of the biggest followings ever is beyond me. In essence, I guess they're not bad, but they're also not as spectacular as countless bumper stickers lead me to believe.
3. Red Hot Chili Peppers - Everything since Blood Sugar Sex Magik has been bland and mediocre at best. Their career is the ultimate fade-away, going from songs like "Catholic School Girls Rule" and "Stone Cold Bush" to a rip-off of Tom Petty in the form of "Dani California." Interestingly enough, as the uniqueness of the music decreases, the popularity grows.
4. Pearl Jam - I haven't really heard anything by this band that I really like, and they're being equated with Nirvana? Vedder's voice is too caustic, and the music itself seems fairly bland and uninspiring. Speaking of Nirvana, though...
5. Nirvana - I do like a few of their songs, and Nevermind was damn good. But many people call them the best band of the 90's, which is simply wrong. Bonus artistic merit points for a suicide ending, but you lose points tenfold for the fact that Courtney Love is still around.
Honorable mentions: Bob Dylan (not a band - the only reason he didn't make the list), Aerosmith, Nickelback, My Chemical Romance, Panic! At The Disco, Fall Out Boy (these last four are all overrated, but unfortunately they all suck too much for inclusion.)
Ryan's Top Five
This will be a quick one for me because I'm tired--of course, though, bad bands inspire me.
1. Metallica - They've had a few good songs. Get over it. Does anyone else have trouble meeting a Metallica fan who doesn't think they're not better than The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, and The Who combined? Also, Lars Ulrich is one of the biggest douches in the music industry.
2. The Doors/Jim Morrison - I like some their singles all right, has anyone else heard anything mindblowing? "When You're Strange" is a forgettable "classic." I once saw a poster that had Jim Morrison next to Hendrix and Lennon, billed as the "gods of rock." Give me a break.
3. Green Day - I agree with everything Tory said. I hated American Idiot, and their album before that was wretched.
4. Aerosmith - Am I the only person (I might actually be, I'm not sure) who hates the "Walk This Way" hip-hop crossover? I'd much rather hear just hip-hop, or a better rock band. Anyway, they're an all right band, I just think they're a good deal overhyped.
5. Kiss - Here's a band that is kind of all right (I guess) to begin with, but when you're fronted by Gene "I created Kiss and therefore am a musical god" Simmons, you make me want to hate you. Sorry Kiss. But thank you for bumping No Doubt from the list, as I knew at heart they violated Tory's rule of bands that are just plain bad.
Tim's Top 5:
I think Metallica has been given enough credit, as has Aerosmith, although "I Don't Wanna Miss a Thing" is really worthy of an entry all its own -- if you consider yourself a rock band, you don't play Diane Warren songs. PERIOD.
1) Dave Matthews Band - This is difficult for me, because I don't really know if anyone considers them good anymore, so they might just fall into the category of bands that are just awful...but every white college-aged male who enjoys recreational drug use (i.e. every white college-aged male who besides me, back in those days) thinks going to a Dave Matthews Band concert is their idea of frat boy paradise. No thanks. They haven't recorded anything but pablum since their first album, which is itself not good, so far as I can tell, but not the most contemptible thing of my lifetime. And everyone seems to at least sort of like them. Screw that. I hate Dave Matthews Band and all its works.
2) Radiohead - Radiohead inspires hatred in me unmatched by any other band. It's not because they're bad, but it's because they are so universally admired by critics for putting together tracks with incomprehensible lyrics and shit like "big fish eat the little ones". Thom Yorke has a great voice, their music was interesting on OK Computer, but the gooey mess on rock critics' face after Kid A and Amnesiac is inexcusable. Their willingness to be so utterly un-pop reminds me just why pop music has value...because at least it's honest.
3) The Doors - Again, like Radiohead, they're not a bad band. I own their greatest hits album, having bought it when I was 15. Other albums I bought when I was 15? Lord knows, but they have to be better than this. People who listened to FM radio in the 1980s and 1990s delightfully forgot that The Doors had songs with three minute keyboard solos for no apparent reason. Every once in a while I will voluntarily not skip by The Doors on the radio...but that's not to say they deserve the acclaim they've given themselves.
4) Led Zeppelin - I really just don't get it. And I will be honest, I don't get it so much that unlike Pink Floyd (who I could have put here, concededly), I've never tried to force myself to listen to Led Zeppelin. I'm not a heavy metal guy and I guess Led Zeppelin leaned in that direction, but I just don't find their music interesting. And people who listen to it I find even less interesting...because they're like self-parodies. Having watched half a season of Freaks and Geeks, it reminded me of why Led Zeppelin is still so revered -- because the people who really love Zeppelin are also the people that didn't ever get jobs, and therefore have more time to tell people about Plant & Page. I think the value of each individual in Led Zeppelin would add up to something around 500% of the value of Led Zeppelin to me. I like Fool in the Rain, but I think by liking Fool in the Rain, I really only underscore just how much I dislike Led Zeppelin. Whole Lotta Love, Stairway to Heaven...these are songs that I shan't miss.
5) ZZ Top - It's hard to not just list "The 1970s" in this list...Journey, Boston, Emerson Lake and Palmer, Yes, Rush...they could all go here. But in trying to distill a list of pure overrated via the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame, I don't think it gets any more obvious to me than this one. ZZ Top is in the rock 'n' roll hall of fame. My only question is..."Lord almighty, how?" I know they've been around a long time, but this isn't the baseball hall of fame, I thought that you had to actually have more than two tracks people knew and at least one that people liked. They're not really trendsetters either, but here you have it. I'm not sure what world puts ZZ Top in the Rock 'n' Roll of Fame while excluding ... well, anyone.
Also of note: Rod Stewart warrants mention for having never done anything of significance by himself yet still attaining substantial fame/acclaim.
Tory's Top 5:
1. Nirvana - As I said, these bands are good. But come on, is Nirvana really that good. Yes, they inspired or pioneered the grunge genre, but just because they were the first doesn't mean that they are the greatest. See some lyrics such as Polly and Lake of Fire to see what I am talking about. I feel that their popularity was helped by the apparent suicide of Cobain, but alas, so was the musical community as the true musician (Grohl) was able to come about and form Foo Fighters, a far superior band.
2. Aerosmith - Joe Perry is an excellent guitarist. Steven Tyler is not an equally good singer. There are songs that I think really thrive, but then there are songs when Tyler does his rap-rock type singing that make me want to vomit ie Sweet Emotion.
3. U2 - I do not like this band that is on my list. They are trite. The Joshua Tree was not an epiphany in history of music. Plus their recent music has been some of the best
4. Green Day - Since Dookie, and really up til Dookie, they offered nothing close to the praise they earn. I suppose Insomniac had a decent playlist, and Nimrod had one good song, but with the recent pointless release of American Idiot, some of the worst political satire or commentary or whatever it is supposed to be, they have shown that the days in which they were a relatively accessible band are gone.
5. RHCP - Probably the best band that is on this list. I understand the majority of people liking them, but there are those that seem to equate this band to a modern day Zeppelin (perhaps not that high of quality, but within a nearby echelon at least.) Their music has seemed to get incredibly boring and repetitive; they did have their days though with Blood Sugar Sex Magic and One Hot Minute.
Dan's (Altered) Top 5:
1. Metallica - Pretty much nothing by this band is good. And they have the audacity to call themselves "metal?" I'm not as much of a metal fan as some friends of mine, but I do know that Metallica sucks when compared to some of the bands I've heard them play on their car stereos.
2. The Grateful Dead - I really haven't heard anything I like from them, and I have a predisposition to not liking "jam" bands (Dispatch excluded). How they got one of the biggest followings ever is beyond me. In essence, I guess they're not bad, but they're also not as spectacular as countless bumper stickers lead me to believe.
3. Red Hot Chili Peppers - Everything since Blood Sugar Sex Magik has been bland and mediocre at best. Their career is the ultimate fade-away, going from songs like "Catholic School Girls Rule" and "Stone Cold Bush" to a rip-off of Tom Petty in the form of "Dani California." Interestingly enough, as the uniqueness of the music decreases, the popularity grows.
4. Pearl Jam - I haven't really heard anything by this band that I really like, and they're being equated with Nirvana? Vedder's voice is too caustic, and the music itself seems fairly bland and uninspiring. Speaking of Nirvana, though...
5. Nirvana - I do like a few of their songs, and Nevermind was damn good. But many people call them the best band of the 90's, which is simply wrong. Bonus artistic merit points for a suicide ending, but you lose points tenfold for the fact that Courtney Love is still around.
Honorable mentions: Bob Dylan (not a band - the only reason he didn't make the list), Aerosmith, Nickelback, My Chemical Romance, Panic! At The Disco, Fall Out Boy (these last four are all overrated, but unfortunately they all suck too much for inclusion.)
Ryan's Top Five
This will be a quick one for me because I'm tired--of course, though, bad bands inspire me.
1. Metallica - They've had a few good songs. Get over it. Does anyone else have trouble meeting a Metallica fan who doesn't think they're not better than The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, and The Who combined? Also, Lars Ulrich is one of the biggest douches in the music industry.
2. The Doors/Jim Morrison - I like some their singles all right, has anyone else heard anything mindblowing? "When You're Strange" is a forgettable "classic." I once saw a poster that had Jim Morrison next to Hendrix and Lennon, billed as the "gods of rock." Give me a break.
3. Green Day - I agree with everything Tory said. I hated American Idiot, and their album before that was wretched.
4. Aerosmith - Am I the only person (I might actually be, I'm not sure) who hates the "Walk This Way" hip-hop crossover? I'd much rather hear just hip-hop, or a better rock band. Anyway, they're an all right band, I just think they're a good deal overhyped.
5. Kiss - Here's a band that is kind of all right (I guess) to begin with, but when you're fronted by Gene "I created Kiss and therefore am a musical god" Simmons, you make me want to hate you. Sorry Kiss. But thank you for bumping No Doubt from the list, as I knew at heart they violated Tory's rule of bands that are just plain bad.
Tim's Top 5:
I think Metallica has been given enough credit, as has Aerosmith, although "I Don't Wanna Miss a Thing" is really worthy of an entry all its own -- if you consider yourself a rock band, you don't play Diane Warren songs. PERIOD.
1) Dave Matthews Band - This is difficult for me, because I don't really know if anyone considers them good anymore, so they might just fall into the category of bands that are just awful...but every white college-aged male who enjoys recreational drug use (i.e. every white college-aged male who besides me, back in those days) thinks going to a Dave Matthews Band concert is their idea of frat boy paradise. No thanks. They haven't recorded anything but pablum since their first album, which is itself not good, so far as I can tell, but not the most contemptible thing of my lifetime. And everyone seems to at least sort of like them. Screw that. I hate Dave Matthews Band and all its works.
2) Radiohead - Radiohead inspires hatred in me unmatched by any other band. It's not because they're bad, but it's because they are so universally admired by critics for putting together tracks with incomprehensible lyrics and shit like "big fish eat the little ones". Thom Yorke has a great voice, their music was interesting on OK Computer, but the gooey mess on rock critics' face after Kid A and Amnesiac is inexcusable. Their willingness to be so utterly un-pop reminds me just why pop music has value...because at least it's honest.
3) The Doors - Again, like Radiohead, they're not a bad band. I own their greatest hits album, having bought it when I was 15. Other albums I bought when I was 15? Lord knows, but they have to be better than this. People who listened to FM radio in the 1980s and 1990s delightfully forgot that The Doors had songs with three minute keyboard solos for no apparent reason. Every once in a while I will voluntarily not skip by The Doors on the radio...but that's not to say they deserve the acclaim they've given themselves.
4) Led Zeppelin - I really just don't get it. And I will be honest, I don't get it so much that unlike Pink Floyd (who I could have put here, concededly), I've never tried to force myself to listen to Led Zeppelin. I'm not a heavy metal guy and I guess Led Zeppelin leaned in that direction, but I just don't find their music interesting. And people who listen to it I find even less interesting...because they're like self-parodies. Having watched half a season of Freaks and Geeks, it reminded me of why Led Zeppelin is still so revered -- because the people who really love Zeppelin are also the people that didn't ever get jobs, and therefore have more time to tell people about Plant & Page. I think the value of each individual in Led Zeppelin would add up to something around 500% of the value of Led Zeppelin to me. I like Fool in the Rain, but I think by liking Fool in the Rain, I really only underscore just how much I dislike Led Zeppelin. Whole Lotta Love, Stairway to Heaven...these are songs that I shan't miss.
5) ZZ Top - It's hard to not just list "The 1970s" in this list...Journey, Boston, Emerson Lake and Palmer, Yes, Rush...they could all go here. But in trying to distill a list of pure overrated via the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame, I don't think it gets any more obvious to me than this one. ZZ Top is in the rock 'n' roll hall of fame. My only question is..."Lord almighty, how?" I know they've been around a long time, but this isn't the baseball hall of fame, I thought that you had to actually have more than two tracks people knew and at least one that people liked. They're not really trendsetters either, but here you have it. I'm not sure what world puts ZZ Top in the Rock 'n' Roll of Fame while excluding ... well, anyone.
Also of note: Rod Stewart warrants mention for having never done anything of significance by himself yet still attaining substantial fame/acclaim.
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