Lurker > FoolFantastic

I'm happy word games have really blown up in the light weight game space. Codenames, Decrypto, Just One, and So Clover are all excellent and accessible and can still be humorous with the right crowd in a legitimately organic way.

Machina

Final Fantasy

The Champions

I would probably put the first four Talking Heads albums over any other R.E.M. album. Which is not to say I don't like the other R.E.M. albums; I just really love the first four TH albums but AFTP is a top 10~ album ever for me.

It Now

"Hysteria" by Muse

Not a style of hip hop I particularly love, and this is the definition of a front-loaded album. An important evolution for the genre, but a genre I'm happy evolved further.

It's Tricky
Walk This Way
My Adidas
Peter Piper
You Be Illin'
Raising Hell
Hit It Run
Proud to Be Black
Perfection
Dumb Girl
Is It Live

Interpol - Turn on the Bright Lights > Weird Al Yankovic - Off the Deep End > Kelsea Ballerini - Subject to Change

R.E.M. - Automatic for the People > Talking Heads - Talking Heads: 77 > Garbage - 2.0

Turn on the Bright Lights and Automatic for the People are both in my top 100, so easy votes for me. I also want to cover Talking Heads at some point, though none of their albums would beat Automatic for the People for me.

I can't wait for the time that Turn on the Bright Lights reaches my own top 3 remaining so Ryo and I can both hopelessly nominate it every single time. Just one of those albums that has no obvious hit to sell it on but pretty much every track is excellent once you actually hear the full thing.

The Cars track ranking

9. I'm in Touch With Your World (Track #4)
Score: 22 (Average Rank: 8.31/9)
Biggest Fan(s): Johnbobb (#5)
Biggest Detractor(s): neonreaper, FoolFantastic, Fluttershy_Pony, Great_Paul, MaxGalactica, MrSmartGuy, BlueCrystalTear, Seanchan, HBJDubs (#9)

darkx: Probably the goofiest song The Cars ever made, and that's saying something. It's probably the weakest song on the album, objectively, but something about it just makes me love it.

8. Don't Cha Stop (Track #5)
Score: 32 (Average Rank: 7.54/9)
Biggest Fan(s): Seanchan (#5)
Biggest Detractor(s): darkx, Johnbobb (#9)

7. Bye Bye Love (Track #7)
Score: 71 (Average Rank: 5.08/9)
Biggest Fan(s): Johnbobb (#1)
Biggest Detractor(s): BlueCrystalTear, Seanchan, HBJDubs (#7)

6. You're All I've Got Tonight (Track #6)
Score: 71 (Average Rank: 5/9)
Biggest Fan(s): HBJDubs (#1)
Biggest Detractor(s): MaxGalactica (#8)

5. All Mixed Up (Track #9)
Score: 78 (Average Rank: 4.54/9)
Biggest Fan(s): Great_Paul, Sheep007 (#2)
Biggest Detractor(s): Johnbobb (#8)

4. Good Times Roll (Track #1)
Score: 81 (Average Rank: 4.31/9)
Biggest Fan(s): neonreaper (#1)
Biggest Detractor(s): MaxGalactica, MrSmartGuy (#7)

hotdogturtle: It's kind of funny that if you ignore this being a "famous song" and just try to analyze it musically, it's actually very... simplistic? Like in terms of lyrics and instrumentation. That's not even a bad thing and doesn't negatively impact it. Just an interesting thing that I never noticed before.

3. My Best Friend's Girl (Track #2)
Score: 92 (Average Rank: 4.15/9)
Biggest Fan(s): darkx, MrSmartGuy (#1)
Biggest Detractor(s): Sheep007, hotdogturtle (#9)

darkx: To put it simply, this is just one of my favorite songs ever. I was a horribly depressed 13-year-old when I first heard it and its devastating lyrics juxtaposed against a peppy pop rock melody just sang to me in the right way at the right time like few other songs ever have. I've probably listened to it over a thousand times in the 21 years since and I'm sure I'll hear it at least a thousand times more before I go.

2. Moving in Stereo (Track #8)
Score: 93 (Average Rank: 4.08/9)
Biggest Fan(s): Fluttershy_Pony, Sheep007 (#1)
Biggest Detractor(s): Great_Paul, darkx, Seanchan (#8)

Fluttershy_Pony: Oh hey, I was obsessed with this song a few years ago. One of those tracks that I played on an infinite loop for weeks. Been long enough since I've heard it that I can enjoy it again.

darkx: I know it's one of their most beloved songs but it's always been just a little bit forgettable to me, especially among their big ones.

1. Just What I Needed (Track #3)
Score: 136 (Average Rank: 2/9)
Biggest Fan(s): FoolFantastic, Great_Paul, MaxGalactica, hotdogturtle, BlueCrystalTear, Seanchan (#1)
Biggest Detractor(s): neonreaper, Fluttershy_Pony (#4)

The Cars - The Cars results

The participants sorted by deviation from final results:
BlueCrystalTear (6)
FoolFantastic (6)
Fluttershy_Pony (8)
HBJDubs (12)
MrSmartGuy (12)
Seanchan (12)
neonreaper (14)
darkx (16)
Great_Paul (16)
Sheep007 (16)
hotdogturtle (18)
MaxGalactica (18)
Johnbobb (22)

General Album Comments

Seanchan: The first 3 songs here everyone has heard a million times before but, if you're like me, had no idea of the group responsible. Then there's 6 more songs and I honestly have no idea if they're good or not because that opening third mostly overwhelmed my ability to think about the rest.

And since I like to say stupid things in these topics... The harmonizing by The Cars reminded me of Queen. Just that part though. Obviously there's no Freddie Mercury here or any of the playfulness of stuff like Fat Bottom Girls or Bicycle Race.

neonreaper: The Cars are great, and this album is fairly easy to rank because it has 5-6 songs that were on the radio/MTV all the time. My top two tracks are pretty easy to rank, and then there's a pile of singles that are a little tricky to rank and I ended up sticking an album cut above them.

hotdogturtle: While reading the song listing for this week's album I had the same reaction as Seanchan.

Fluttershy_Pony: Good album. A lot of hit songs in a rather short package that doesn't drag.

Sheep007: Got my second listen in early this week. Moving in Stereo is head and shoulders above the rest - I'm not super fond of the album as a whole but still think a lot of the individual songs are pretty good? I also can't say I heard a ton of them on the radio, although that may be cause I'm a little younger than a lot of B8 and am European.

MaxGalactica: Solid classic 80's new wave/pop album. Just What I Needed is as good as it always has been. Bye Bye Love and All Mixed Up were pleasant surprises. The rest were good, but lacked something tangible for me to really latch on to. Still a rather enjoyable album as a whole.

hotdogturtle: Before listening to this album I couldn't name anything about The Cars. But this album had 3 songs that I recognized by title and then 2 more that I recognized by melody once they started. So that's a good signifier of its quality and popularity.

darkx: According to the liner notes for the Cars' Complete Greatest Hits, during the recording sessions for their debut album, the band joked that it would be their Greatest Hits. While they certainly went on to have some pretty big hits on subsequent albums (in fact, their highest-charted song, "Drive," isn't even from this one), I'd say this one has the highest concentration of hits out of any of their albums. It's short, it's sweet, almost every track got a lot of airplay on the radio and on MTV, and while it slows down a bit after the 1-2-3 punch that opens it, there's hardly a slow spot on the entire record.

BlueCrystalTear: I've heard most of this album before, as I own an MP3 compilation of The Cars, over half of which is taken from their two best albums (this one has 6 and Heartbeat City has 5). But this was quite the momentum setter - this debut is so strong that it was able to carry their career for a decade, and thank goodness. The Cars are good shit, and I'm glad Rick Ocasek lived long enough to be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Ben Orr, sadly, didn't - one thing that made the Cars stand out were how Ocasek and Orr had voices that made for great harmonies.

As for this album, seven out of nine songs are absolute bangers, with "All Mixed Up" being a pleasant surprise (I hadn't heard that one before). There are two album tracks that are simply good, but good is good enough for those.

Seanchan: An objectively good album (other than I'm in Touch With Your World) but one that I failed to really connect with. Not exactly sure why. Maybe I found the lyrics to be a bit repetitive? Maybe I just wasn't "feeling it" for doing music analysis this week. Whatever the case, it was still nice to check off another rock classic.

HBJDubs: This is a total classic. I think every song here is great. They're all really fun to play in Rock Band too.

ChichiriMuyo on the choices this week:
"
R.E.M. - Automatic for the People

It's not my personal first choice, but the it is the most highly regarded of their albums. It's a great album, and represents them at their peak.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-UE7tXDKIus

Garbage - 2.0

It was incredibly difficult for me to choose between this and their self-titled debut. Both are fantastic, and the sound each album has is so different you'd think it took many albums to evolve. I ultimately went with 2.0 not because I think it's the better of the two (again, hard as hell to choose), but because this album is the more energetic and fun of the two.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Je-CPZRwbh8

Talking Heads - Talking Heads: 77

Of the bands I'm nominating this time around, this is the one that surprises me the most that we've never done an album by. This feels like it'd be right up his group's alley. I went with his particular album because none of their albums are particularly dense with hits, so why not begin at the the begging? Also, it has my favorite song from the band, a song that everytime I hear it I get the urge to learn how to play bass.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eauZzwt8Ci8

Snake/RyoCaliente/BlueCrystalTear week:
Kelsea Ballerini - Subject to Change
vs.
Interpol - Turn on the Bright Lights
vs.
Weird Al Yankovic - Off the Deep End

ChichiriMuyo week:
R.E.M. - Automatic for the People
vs.
Garbage - 2.0
vs.
Talking Heads - Talking Heads: 77

Previous results can be seen here:
https://board8.fandom.com/wiki/Rank_the_Tracks
https://board8.fandom.com/wiki/Rank_the_Tracks_Set_2
https://board8.fandom.com/wiki/Rank_the_Tracks_Set_3

The rules:
1. Listen to the album in full
2. Rank every track on the album
3. For the results, there will be a curve at the top of each list; two additional points between #1 and #2, and one additional point for the next two ranks. This way, the songs that really stick out to someone get an edge that is not immediately negated by someone else putting it lower. In the case of Demon Days, someone's 15th track will get 1 point, 14th 2 points, 4th 12 points, 3rd 14 points, 2nd 16 points, and 1st 19 points. For albums with greater than 15 tracks, everything ranked below #15 will be given 0 points and the scale for the top 15 will be the same as a 15-track album. For albums with more than 20 tracks, you only have to list your top 15 (with 16-20, I still like having the average rank listed)
4. If you want to include comments for individual songs, I will compile them in the results
5. The results will be posted at the beginning of the next topic
6. The deadline to vote is Sunday, November 19th at 4:00 PM Central Time; the future week poll will close earlier, when I am putting up the next topic. If you do get in a vote after the deadline but before I post the results, I will probably include it.
7. You can sign up to be added to the user cycle (a new user will be added to the end of the current cycle as long as there are four weeks remaining) - the next person on the list will choose 3 albums which the other users will vote on for the next topic.
7a. To ensure people are being given an actual choice, the three nominated albums must be by different artists. You can otherwise stick to a similar sound or era.
7b. The tiebreaker for these polls will be whichever is listed first in the poll options - make sure to deliver the results in order of your own preference (which will hopefully have the added benefit of influencing people toward your first choice if they can't decide).
7c. I have added a tiered vote structure - the least popular album will be removed and its backup votes distributed to the other two entrants.
8. Starting with the next cycle, every four weeks will be a competitive week where those listed choose a single album to face off against others.
9. Skits and tracks under 40 seconds will be excluded from the rankings unless argued otherwise

Run-D.M.C. - Raising Hell track list:
1. Peter Piper
2. It's Tricky
3. My Adidas
4. Walk This Way
5. Is It Live
6. Perfection
7. Hit It Run
8. Raising Hell
9. You Be Illin'
10. Dumb Girl
(11. Son of Byford)
12. Proud to Be Black

Current cycle:
11/19: Great_Paul (Simple Plan - Get Your Heart On!)
11/26: jcgamer107 (...no response)
12/3: Snake5555555555/RyoCaliente/BlueCrystalTear
12/10: ChichiriMuyo
12/17: BlueCrystalTear
12/24: rwlh
12/31: NFUN/Fluttershy_Pony/ChichiriMuyo
1/7: NFUN
1/14: StifledSilence
1/21: MaxGalactica
1/28: ZaziGuado/HBJDubs
2/4: Sheep007

Future Cycle:
2/11: HBJDubs
2/18: Fluttershy_Pony
2/25: Steiner
3/3: competitive week
3/10: Snake5555555555
3/17: ZaziGuado
3/24: firefdr
3/31: competitive week
4/7: Johnbobb
4/14: FoolFantastic
4/21: Seanchan
4/28: competitive week
5/5: Giggsalot
5/12: RyoCaliente
5/19: darkx
5/26: competitive week
6/2: neonreaper

Man

I think I legitimately hurt my hand playing Climb to the Beat just now. I've never realized how uncomfortable the buttons can be in handheld mode, but the rhythmic timing with one button while also needing to hold down the other really does not feel good. I keep losing because the muscle in my hand suddenly cramps up.

I eventually started playing CAH trying to make the most mundane responses possible.

I need to do one of these topics sometime. I helped run a board game club in college and currently own well over 100.

Very strong, with a nice blend of styles.

Tudo Que Voc Podia Ser
O Trem Azul
Cravo e Canela
Um Girassol Da Cor De Seu Cabelo
Cais
Paisagem Da Janela
Nada Ser Como Antes
Um Gosto De Sol
Trem De Doido
Nuvem Cigana
Sadas e Bandeiras N 2
Clube da Esquina
Os Povos
San Vicente
Dos Cruces
Ao Que Vai Nascer
Lilia
Pelo Amor De Deus
Me Deixa Em Paz

-Face

From Spirited Away

The Suburbs track ranking

16. Month of May (Track #10)
Score: 32 (Average Rank: 12.44/16)
Biggest Fan(s): HBJDubs (#10)
Biggest Detractor(s): Blur (#16)

Fluttershy_Pony: Ehh... I shouldn't be so blunt about it, but the more typical rock sound on this track kinda bores me? Like, it's *fine*, but....

14 (tie). Sprawl I (Flatland) (Track #14)
Score: 36 (Average Rank: 12/16)
Biggest Fan(s): Sheep007 (#4)
Biggest Detractor(s): FoolFantastic, Fluttershy_Pony (#15)

14 (tie). Rococo (Track #4)
Score: 36 (Average Rank: 12/16)
Biggest Fan(s): RyoCaliente (#6)
Biggest Detractor(s): Fluttershy_Pony (#16)

13. Wasted Hours (A Life We Can Live) (Track #11)
Score: 38 (Average Rank: 11.78/16)
Biggest Fan(s): Seanchan (#5)
Biggest Detractor(s): FoolFantastic (#16)

12. The Suburbs (continued) (Track #16)
Score: 40 (Average Rank: 11.67/16)
Biggest Fan(s): Fluttershy_Pony (#3)
Biggest Detractor(s): Johnbobb, HBJDubs (#16)

Fluttershy_Pony: A short, poignant outro. I'm sure there's an argument that the song is too short for me to be giving it such a high placement--I'm honestly considering moving it up to first--but I'm not really bothered by short tracks. It comes in, hits the emotional beats it wants to, and fades away. A perfect end to the album

11. City with No Children (Track #6)
Score: 47 (Average Rank: 10.78/16)
Biggest Fan(s): Johnbobb (#4)
Biggest Detractor(s): MaxGalactica (#16)

Fluttershy_Pony: Catchy tune and the second verse has some very pleasing self-doubt. I enjoy this.

10. Half Light I (Track #7)
Score: 63 (Average Rank: 9.11/16)
Biggest Fan(s): HBJDubs (#3)
Biggest Detractor(s): RyoCaliente, Sheep007 (#16)

9. Deep Blue (Track #12)
Score: 65 (Average Rank: 8.78/16)
Biggest Fan(s): HBJDubs, Sheep007, Blur (#6)
Biggest Detractor(s): FoolFantastic (#13)

Sheep007: This one really worked for me. Not sure why.

8. Half Light II (No Celebration) (Track #8)
Score: 71 (Average Rank: 8.22/16)
Biggest Fan(s): Johnbobb (#3)
Biggest Detractor(s): Seanchan (#14)

Fluttershy_Pony: A song that is close to greatness. I love low tones and this song certainly *toys* with the idea of powerful, rumbling tones but never fully commits to it; there's a fair amount of pain over growing up--"In this town where I was born, I now see through a dead man's eyes" is definitely the type of blunt sadness I go for--but I never quite connect with it the way I should. I do like the song, but it feels like it should be something I love and it never quite reaches that mark.

7. We Used to Wait (Track #13)
Score: 78 (Average Rank: 7.89/16)
Biggest Fan(s): HBJDubs, Blur (#2)
Biggest Detractor(s): Seanchan (#16)

RyoCaliente: I barely lived in a time of writing letters, and this track still manages to make me nostalgic.

6. Modern Man (Track #3)
Score: 83 (Average Rank: 7.22/16)
Biggest Fan(s): Seanchan (#1)
Biggest Detractor(s): Fluttersh_Pony, HBJDubs (#11)

5. Empty Room (Track #5)
Score: 85 (Average Rank: 7.33/16)
Biggest Fan(s): Johnbobb (#1)
Biggest Detractor(s): FoolFantastic (#14)

Fluttershy_Pony: The other song I wanted to revisit as I've had this stuck in my head for days. "When I'm by myself, I can be myself"... am I that easily manipulated by such basic lyrics? Yes. ....Ehhh, very close call between this and Suburbs (Continued), but I think I'll jump this one up to second place. Honestly, my top three are all really close this time around, I could cycle them in any order and be content with it.

4. Suburban War (Track #9)
Score: 89 (Average Rank: 6.22/16)
Biggest Fan(s): Blur (#3)
Biggest Detractor(s): Seanchan (#10)

RyoCaliente: Such an incredibly cool sound.

Fluttershy_Pony: One of the songs I most wanted to revisit and move up a few notches. I have a hard time figuring out why I'm drawn to this track, but I am drawn to it regardless.

3. The Suburbs (Track #1)
Score: 109 (Average Rank: 4.67/16)
Biggest Fan(s): RyoCaliente, Seanchan, Sheep007 (#2)
Biggest Detractor(s): Fluttershy_Pony, HBJDubs (#8)

RyoCaliente: So emotional to me. Everything before is great, but everything after So can you understand... again is one of those top music moments.

Fluttershy_Pony: It's an odd complaint, but the backing music on this track feels a bit too jaunty for me. It is better than I gave it credit for (or, perhaps, my love of "The Suburbs (Continued)" is eroding my ability to judge this track fairly [or, perhaps, both]) and I'm moving it up my ranks a little.

Sheep007: I'm realising I'm kinda a sucker for opening songs in a lot of these albums, but a lot of the good ones have strong starts, and this is probably the best standalone, too.

2. Ready to Start (Track #2)
Score: 132 (Average Rank: 3/16)
Biggest Fan(s): Fluttershy_Pony, HBJDubs (#1)
Biggest Detractor(s): Seanchan (#6)

Fluttershy_Pony: I'm not sure how it'll hold up, but I think this may actually be my current favorite song of the cycle. There's a lot of competition and it likely depends on what type of mood I'm in that day, but still, great song.

1. Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains) (Track #15)
Score: 139 (Average Rank: 2.89/16)
Biggest Fan(s): RyoCaliente, FoolFantastic, MaxGalactica, Sheep007, Blur (#1)
Biggest Detractor(s): Johnbobb (#8)

RyoCaliente: They heard me singing and they told me stop/Quit these pretentious things and just punch the clock/ Absolutely one of my favourite tracks of anything ever.

Fluttershy_Pony: A good song that's dropped a bit from where I had it before. As I'm sure I've mentioned before, I'm typically drawn towards darkness, so a blunt line like "I need the darkness, someone please cut the lights" is basically cheating in terms of 'things I'm obligated to give a lot of points for'. Still, it's not quite as catchy as "Empty Rooms" or as emotional as "The Suburbs (Continued)", so I think I want it moved down just a couple pegs.

Arcade Fire - The Suburbs results

The participants sorted by deviation from final results:
MaxGalactica (35)
FoolFantastic (37)
Blur (40)
Fluttershy_Pony (48)
RyoCaliente (50)
Johnbobb (52)
Sheep007 (56)
HBJDubs (60)
Seanchan (63)

General Album Comments

Seanchan: Haven't heard this in a long time. Surprised how much I still generally remembered of it aside from a few tracks near the end (except for Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains), which is memorable). I do want to sit down and pay a bit more attention to the lyrics on my next listen.

Perhaps it's just because we listened to it recently, but it feels like someone smarter than me could make some insightful comparisons between this and Illinois. That album jumped into my head within a few tracks of re-listening to The Suburbs, despite this album being much more traditionally "rock" sounding.

Also, I'm starting to feel like interplay between male and female vocalists is a thing for me. It's not quite as prevalent here as it is with Of Monsters and Men - My Head is an Animal or The xx - xx, but there's something about that dichotomy which seems to please my brain.

Johnbobb: This album is all solid, but for it's length I definitely kinda wish there was more variety to its sound. It sounds like it's intended to be a coming-of-age movie soundtrack, but one that couldn't afford to get Sufjan Stevens. It was also considerably stronger in the first half.

Fluttershy_Pony: I really liked this album. I don't usually revisit albums that we've covered too often (outside of the "Rank the Albums" period where I need to refresh my memories), even the ones that I enjoy, because it can be a bit rough trying to make extra time for it. I need to prepare to listen to whatever our next album is, there's usually an unrelated music topic or two on board that I'm trying to follow, I've got my own music that I want to listen to, and sometimes I do things other than listen to music. So, dropping everything to sneak in one extra listen and rearrange my list is very out of character for me & is a pretty good sign that I'd rank this as one of the top tier albums we've covered.

[Later, after having finished the relisten]

Well, it's definitely a long album. I'd say I really, really like about half of it; I suppose if I were to score every song on the album and average them to give a "fair" ranking, this would *probably* wind up several spaces lower in my Rank the Albums list than it's going to... but seven high scoring songs, for me, more than makes up for any parts of the album that try to drag it down.

Seanchan: I'm still a little surprised that I enjoy this album as much as I do, as it feels a little bit out of my normal wheelhouse. And I say that dating back to originally listening to this album in the wake of it winning a Grammy back over a decade ago. This isn't an "artsy" album per se, but it probably has "more to say" than most other albums I liked back then? I don't know. That still doesn't feel quite right. Maybe it's just that there's almost nothing here I'd consider a "radio hit" and yet this is a very strong album with lots of fun hooks.

Ultimately, for me this is an album that's more than the sum of its parts.I found it difficult to do the ranking and feel like this could have fluctuated pretty wildly if I was doing it at a different time. In very quickly scrolling past the rankings submitted so far, I suspect this one is going to be all over the place with lots of songs in someone's top 5 and someone else's bottom 5.

Thinking about the album as a whole, it feels like the pillars are The Suburbs, Suburban War (espeically with some of the lyrics brought back from that initial track), and Sprawl II. Those are the 3 songs that encapsulate the tone, vibe, and message of the album.

MaxGalactica: I liked this album a lot more than I expected when I previewed the album during the initial vote for this album. Several high quality, catchy songs. The top 6 in my ranking are all songs that I'd definitely go back to in the future (Sprawl II, Ready to Start, Empty Room, Half Light II, The Suburbs, and Modern Man). Great album with great songwriting.

HBJDubs: I didn't really get into Arcade Fire back then but I like this album a lot more now (same goes for Funeral). Nothing in particular stands out but I think that's by design and a good call, everything sounds better together.

Sheep007: Good album, I've heard a few of the songs here before and I think they're actually better in terms of this album than by themselves. It comes together as a cohesive whole and the songs range from excellent to fine enough - I think there's a dropoff in the middle, but it's back to being pretty good when it comes full circle on the theme towards the end. The top three was pretty tight - I think The Suburbs isn't quite as unique as Sprawl II, but it sounds bloody good, and same with Ready to Start.

Blur: I am quite surprised how much I enjoy this record now. I considered it a pretty big disappointment on release, and while I still don't think it reaches the heights that Funeral and Neon Bible do - or at least doesn't reach those heights as consistently - I enjoy it so much more than I used to. At the very least, it's probably Arcade Fire's most poignant album.

Shocked at the diversity of rankings on We Used to Wait! I have always adored that song so much. It was initially hard to pick between that and Sprawl II for the top spot. I've listened to more of We Used to Wait over the years...but that's not enough to give it the edge. Sprawl II is an unimpeachable masterpiece. Inject me with that beautiful synth. Don't think I've ever enjoyed Chassagne's vocals more.

Suburban War rounds out the top three with a bang. The guitar work might be simple, but it's probably my favorite riff on the album. Both Win's lyrics and vocals are the perfect amount of melancholy here, and the last minute of this song is sublime.

Half Light is just sheer beauty. A very ethereal song. While I feel like I could use that word to describe a third of this album, this song does it best.

The next four are about equal levels of greatness and I really struggled to rank them. Deep Blue sounds like a lost Bon Iver song and I'm here for it. Poignant, nostalgic lyrics bolstered by a beautiful piano. Feels ahead of its time with an anti-technology/social media message. Ready to Start is simultaneously catchy and grim and just a tsunami of energy. The Suburbs is an excellent, tone-setting opener. Modern Man has some of my favorite lyrics and the best guitar work on the album.

Half Light II doesn't hit me as hard emotionally as its predecessor, but this upbeat follow-up makes up for it with its catchiness. Another standout for the songwriting.

Empty Room is such a great little jam. Love the ethereal vocals juxtaposed with a blistering guitar and intense drums. Wasted Hours is a lovely little nostalgic ditty that feels like a Kimya Dawson song with richer instrumentation.

11 great tracks and we finally have a quality drop off. City With No Children might be the poppiest song on the record, but it's also one of the most forgettable. Rococo is almost as forgettable, but at least has pretty vocals. The Suburbs (continued) would be a nothing track, but the final lines are such a haunting end to the record that I have to give it a little love. Finally, Month of May has some great energy, but it's ultimately the only song on the album I don't really care for.

Hands

Specifically the Big Thief album

Sonic the Hedgehog

7

A card game I own

Previous results can be seen here:
https://board8.fandom.com/wiki/Rank_the_Tracks
https://board8.fandom.com/wiki/Rank_the_Tracks_Set_2
https://board8.fandom.com/wiki/Rank_the_Tracks_Set_3

The rules:
1. Listen to the album in full
2. Rank every track on the album
3. For the results, there will be a curve at the top of each list; two additional points between #1 and #2, and one additional point for the next two ranks. This way, the songs that really stick out to someone get an edge that is not immediately negated by someone else putting it lower. In the case of Demon Days, someone's 15th track will get 1 point, 14th 2 points, 4th 12 points, 3rd 14 points, 2nd 16 points, and 1st 19 points. For albums with greater than 15 tracks, everything ranked below #15 will be given 0 points and the scale for the top 15 will be the same as a 15-track album. For albums with more than 20 tracks, you only have to list your top 15 (with 16-20, I still like having the average rank listed)
4. If you want to include comments for individual songs, I will compile them in the results
5. The results will be posted at the beginning of the next topic
6. The deadline to vote is Sunday, November 12th at 4:00 PM Central Time; the future week poll will close earlier, when I am putting up the next topic
7. You can sign up to be added to the user cycle (a new user will be added to the end of the current cycle as long as there are four weeks remaining) - the next person on the list will choose 3 albums which the other users will vote on for the next topic.
7a. To ensure people are being given an actual choice, the three nominated albums must be by different artists. You can otherwise stick to a similar sound or era.
7b. The tiebreaker for these polls will be whichever is listed first in the poll options - make sure to deliver the results in order of your own preference (which will hopefully have the added benefit of influencing people toward your first choice if they can't decide).
7c. I have added a tiered vote structure - the least popular album will be removed and its backup votes distributed to the other two entrants.
8. Starting with the next cycle, every four weeks will be a competitive week where those listed choose a single album to face off against others.
9. Skits and tracks under 40 seconds will be excluded from the rankings unless argued otherwise

Milton Nascimento and Lo Borges - Clube da Esquina track list:
1. Tudo Que Voc Podia Ser
2. Cais
3. O Trem Azul
(4. Sadas e Bandeiras N 1)
5. Nuvem Cigana
6. Cravo e Canela
7. Dos Cruces
8. Um Girassol Da Cor De Seu Cabelo
9. San Vicente
(10. Estrelas)
11. Clube da Esquina
12. Paisagem Da Janela
13. Me Deixa Em Paz
14. Os Povos
15. Sadas e Bandeiras N 2
16. Um Gosto De Sol
17. Pelo Amor De Deus
18. Lilia
19. Trem De Doido
20. Nada Ser Como Antes
21. Ao Que Vai Nascer

Current cycle:
11/12: neonreaper (Run DMC - Raisin' Hell)
11/19: Great_Paul (Simple Plan - Get Your Heart On!)
11/26: jcgamer107
12/3: Snake5555555555/RyoCaliente/BlueCrystalTear
12/10: ChichiriMuyo
12/17: BlueCrystalTear
12/24: rwlh
12/31: NFUN/Fluttershy_Pony/ChichiriMuyo
1/7: NFUN
1/14: StifledSilence
1/21: MaxGalactica
1/28: ZaziGuado/HBJDubs
2/4: Sheep007

Future Cycle:
2/11: HBJDubs
2/18: Fluttershy_Pony
2/25: Steiner
3/3: competitive week
3/10: Snake5555555555
3/17: ZaziGuado
3/24: firefdr
3/31: competitive week
4/7: Johnbobb
4/14: FoolFantastic
4/21: Seanchan
4/28: competitive week
5/5: Giggsalot
5/12: RyoCaliente
5/19: darkx
5/26: competitive week

-less

A King Crimson song

Oak

Probably won't be able to get to these results for a few days...

Balls

Zero

Yeller

...again, I think

I don't understand how it can be the dumbest thing if it causes them to win.

bump

mobile

Aw yeah Werewolf by Night on first spotlight

Yeah, he should absolutely be a 1-cost, because his only real use at this point seems to be a surprise drop on turn 5 and that would at least open him up to being paired with a 4-cost.

I saw a Reddit thread about the dev team claiming there are still some archetypes that have seemingly gone undiscovered by the community at large. I decided to revisit my opponent discard idea and after some tinkering have created an apparent monstrosity.

Opponent discard/Darkhawk is an unintuitive combo that works well together.

Korg/Black Widow/Moon Knight/Silver Samurai/Black Bolt/America Chavez or Doctor Doom is a devastating game. And the whole Darkhawk core makes a powerful alternative. Black Widow supports both archetypes well.

I've received several "I don't believe you" reacts upon my opponent reaching turn 6 with 1 card in hand. I kind of hope this archetype does not spread, because it would be terrible to face on a regular occasion. Of course, the discard path completely collapses when the opponent is playing an Apocalypse deck.

Worse, I'm still tinkering and might be missing an obvious inclusion; I am inexplicably not running Stature after finding myself rarely playing her.

Current deck:
Korg
Nico
Zabu
Black Widow
Rock Slide
Moon Knight
Darkhawk
Absorbing Man
Silver Samurai
Black Bolt
Doctor Doom
America Chavez

Fighting

Just What I Needed
My Best Friend's Girl
Moving in Stereo
Good Times Roll
Bye Bye Love
You're All I've Got Tonight
All Mixed Up
Don't Cha Stop
I'm in Touch With Your World

Ladies'

Great_Paul's week:
Avenged Sevenfold - City of Evil
vs.
Serj Tankian - Harakiri
vs.
Simple Plan - Get Your Heart On!

Previous results can be seen here:
https://board8.fandom.com/wiki/Rank_the_Tracks
https://board8.fandom.com/wiki/Rank_the_Tracks_Set_2
https://board8.fandom.com/wiki/Rank_the_Tracks_Set_3

The rules:
1. Listen to the album in full
2. Rank every track on the album
3. For the results, there will be a curve at the top of each list; two additional points between #1 and #2, and one additional point for the next two ranks. This way, the songs that really stick out to someone get an edge that is not immediately negated by someone else putting it lower. In the case of Demon Days, someone's 15th track will get 1 point, 14th 2 points, 4th 12 points, 3rd 14 points, 2nd 16 points, and 1st 19 points. For albums with greater than 15 tracks, everything ranked below #15 will be given 0 points and the scale for the top 15 will be the same as a 15-track album. For albums with more than 20 tracks, you only have to list your top 15 (with 16-20, I still like having the average rank listed)
4. If you want to include comments for individual songs, I will compile them in the results
5. The results will be posted at the beginning of the next topic
6. The deadline to vote is Sunday, November 5th at 4:00 PM Central Time; the future week poll will close earlier, when I am putting up the next topic
7. You can sign up to be added to the user cycle (a new user will be added to the end of the current cycle as long as there are four weeks remaining) - the next person on the list will choose 3 albums which the other users will vote on for the next topic.
7a. To ensure people are being given an actual choice, the three nominated albums must be by different artists. You can otherwise stick to a similar sound or era.
7b. The tiebreaker for these polls will be whichever is listed first in the poll options - make sure to deliver the results in order of your own preference (which will hopefully have the added benefit of influencing people toward your first choice if they can't decide).
7c. I have added a tiered vote structure - the least popular album will be removed and its backup votes distributed to the other two entrants.
8. Starting with the next cycle, every four weeks will be a competitive week where those listed choose a single album to face off against others.
9. Skits and tracks under 40 seconds will be excluded from the rankings unless argued otherwise

The Cars - The Cars track list:
1. Good Times Roll
2. My Best Friend's Girl
3. Just What I Needed
4. I'm in Touch With Your World
5. Don't Cha Stop
6. You're All I've Got Tonight
7. Bye Bye Love
8. Moving in Stereo
9. All Mixed Up

Current cycle:
11/5: Giggsalot's bonus (Milton Nascimento and Lo Borges - Clube de Esquina)
11/12: neonreaper (Run DMC - Raisin' Hell)
11/19: Great_Paul
11/26: jcgamer107
12/3: Snake5555555555/RyoCaliente/BlueCrystalTear
12/10: ChichiriMuyo
12/17: BlueCrystalTear
12/24: rwlh
12/31: NFUN/Fluttershy_Pony/ChichiriMuyo
1/7: NFUN
1/14: StifledSilence
1/21: MaxGalactica
1/28: ZaziGuado/HBJDubs
2/4: Sheep007

Future Cycle:
2/11: HBJDubs
2/18: Fluttershy_Pony
2/25: Steiner
3/3: competitive week
3/10: Snake5555555555
3/17: ZaziGuado
3/24: firefdr
3/31: competitive week
4/7: Johnbobb
4/14: FoolFantastic
4/21: Seanchan
4/28: competitive week
5/5: Giggsalot
5/12: RyoCaliente
5/19: darkx

Homophobia

Suns

Francis

Mosh

Milton Nascimento and Lo Borges - Clube de Esquina > The Dillinger Escape Plan - One of Us is the Killer > Knower - Knower Forever

Run DMC - Raisin Hell > Ice T - Original Gangster > DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince - Hes The DJ Im The Rapper

Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains)
Ready to Start
The Suburbs
We Used to Wait
Suburban War
Modern Man
Half Light I
Rococo
Half Light II (No Celebration)
City with No Children
Month of May
The Suburbs (continued)
Deep Blue
Empty Room
Sprawl I (Flatland)
Wasted Hours (A Life We Can Live)

FKA twigs - Magdalene results

The participants sorted by deviation from final results:
Sheep007 (10)
FoolFantastic (14)
Johnbobb (14)
Seanchan (18)
HBJDubs (20)
MaxGalactica (20)
Fluttershy_Pony (30)
Giggsalot (30)

General Album Comments

Seanchan: As you might expect, I wasn't feeling this. I might be wrong in calling this an "artsy" album, but that's how it came across to me on a first listen. It felt like one of those albums where I am missing the background and insight into the artist to know why this album is such a big deal.

FoolFantastic: It is classified as 'art pop' (and glitch pop) on RYM, so it is artsy. I think of FKA twigs in the same breath as SOPHIE, if on opposite ends of that particular spectrum. Where Oil of Every Pearl's Un-Insides is abrasive, Magdalene creates unease through relatively quiet moments that are occasionally thrust into passionate bursts. There's a certain control of emptiness that sets this apart, whether it be minimal instrumentation or the occasional total stop. This juxtaposition creates what I find to be a unique sense of motion throughout the album.
(...)
One of the most hauntingly beautiful albums I know. I love the way twigs centers her voice here. There is a sense of fragility throughout, culminating in the absolutely devastating "Cellophane." That final track shows that one loud moment can leave a huge impact.

HBJDubs: Fool put this in better words than I could. This is really good! I definitely want to check out more of her music

MaxGalactica: Very enjoyable album. Lots of subtle production and composition choices that I really enjoyed. The vocals were stellar and emotive, especially in cellophane. The top 3 in my ranking (sad day, cellophane, and daybed) were the big highlights for me, but there weren't any bad songs in the album. The only thing is the Future verse in holy terrain feels way out-of-place. Otherwise, this was a fantastic listen.

Sheep007: How the hell have I not heard of this artist before, or listened to a thing from her? She's got a gorgeous voice and the album is a lot easier on the ears than similar music I've listened to - I can't pin down what genre this is supposed to be beyond it being weird and melancholy, and that's only to the album's benefit. The quiet-loud dichotomy throughout really make this.

Giggsalot: Magdalene isn't an album I return to especially regularly, perhaps due to its emotional intensity, but this is one of the best records of the last decade. Twigs' songwriting and vocals have never been better - even the songs here that do things that I don't love are consistently dynamic and surprising. The production is absolutely sumptuous too - there's no one better at sound design than Nicolas Jaar, and his fingerprints are all over this. Honestly, this album has pretty much everything.

Seanchan: I just didn't connect with this album. I guess I can see why this might be "a big deal" but for me there wasn't much here either instrumentally or lyrically.

Magdalene track ranking

9. Holy Terrain (Track #4)
Score: 32 (Average Rank: 6.25/9)
Biggest Fan(s): Fluttershy_Pony (#2)
Biggest Detractor(s): FoolFantastic, HBJDubs, Sheep007 (#9)

8. Thousand Eyes (Track #1)
Score: 33 (Average Rank: 6.25/9)
Biggest Fan(s): Giggsalot (#2)
Biggest Detractor(s): Fluttershy_Pony, Johnbobb (#9)

Sheep007: Dunks you straight into the mood of the album. Within a few seconds of this song getting into gear, I knew what the vibes were gonna be and I knew I was in for something interesting. What a great intro.

7. Daybed (Track #8)
Score: 39 (Average Rank: 5.88/9)
Biggest Fan(s): Fluttershy_Pony (#1)
Biggest Detractor(s): Seanchan (#9)

6. Home with You (Track #2)
Score: 40 (Average Rank: 5.38/9)
Biggest Fan(s): HBJDubs (#2)
Biggest Detractor(s): Sheep007 (#8)

5. Mary Magdalene (Track #5)
Score: 45 (Average Rank: 4.88/9)
Biggest Fan(s): Giggsalot (#1)
Biggest Detractor(s): HBJDubs (#8)

4. Mirrored Heart (Track #7)
Score: 46 (Average Rank: 5/9)
Biggest Fan(s): Seanchan (#1)
Biggest Detractor(s): MaxGalactica, Giggsalot (#9)

3. Cellophane (Track #9)
Score: 47 (Average Rank: 4.88/9)
Biggest Fan(s): FoolFantastic (#1)
Biggest Detractor(s): Fluttershy_Pony (#8)

2. Fallen Alien (Track #6)
Score: 55 (Average Rank: 4.13/9)
Biggest Fan(s): Johnbobb (#1)
Biggest Detractor(s): HBJDubs (#7)

1. Sad Day (Track #3)
Score: 79 (Average Rank: 2.38/9)
Biggest Fan(s): HBJDubs, MaxGalactica, Sheep007 (#1)
Biggest Detractor(s): Fluttershy_Pony (#6)

Sheep007: Easy pick for one of the best songs of this cycle.

Sade - Love Deluxe results

The participants sorted by deviation from final results:
Fluttershy_Pony (12)
rwlh (14)
MaxGalactica (16)
HBJDubs (18)
Seanchan (18)
Sheep007 (22)

General Album Comments

Seanchan: I generally enjoyed this album, despite the fact that its not a particularly "exciting" album for me. With that said, I feel like this is one that's going to quickly fade from my memory and will end up being one of those "oh yeah, this one" albums come the next Rank the Albums.

rwlh: Oh yeah! This album is an all-timer for me. I love every song. If this was nominated for my album ranking, it probably would have won (or at least gotten top 5).

HBJDubs: Very nice and soothing album

MaxGalactica: Great album. A bit hard to rate as everything is nearly the same level for me, except my top 2 and bottom 1 are pretty clear. Very relaxing, well-produced, smooth album and Sade's vocals are bliss.

FoolFantastic: I started but then forgot to submit my ranking for this. Part of that is I find it really hard to find a qualitative difference between most of these; they're all right around the same level for me. In this case, that is far from a bad thing - this is an excellent album from beginning to end, capturing a unique, passionate atmosphere. Despite my lack of ranking, this might be my favorite discovery of the project so far.

Love Deluxe track ranking

9. Pearls (Track #7)
Score: 17 (Average Rank: 7.17/9)
Biggest Fan(s): HBJDubs (#4)
Biggest Detractor(s): Fluttershy_Pony, Sheep007 (#9)

8. I Couldn't Love You More (Track #3)
Score: 27 (Average Rank: 6.17/9)
Biggest Fan(s): Sheep007 (#1)
Biggest Detractor(s): rwlh, HBJDubs, MaxGalactica (#8)

7. Bullet Proof Soul (Track #8)
Score: 29 (Average Rank: 5.33/9)
Biggest Fan(s): rwlh (#3)
Biggest Detractor(s): Sheep007 (#7)

6. Like a Tattoo (Track #4)
Score: 30 (Average Rank: 5.67/9)
Biggest Fan(s): MaxGalactica (#1)
Biggest Detractor(s): rwlh (#9)

5. Cherish the Day (Track #6)
Score: 33 (Average Rank: 5.17/9)
Biggest Fan(s): HBJDubs, Sheep007 (#2)
Biggest Detractor(s): MaxGalactica (#9)

4. Feel No Pain (Track #2)
Score: 35 (Average Rank: 5/9)
Biggest Fan(s): Seanchan (#1)
Biggest Detractor(s): HBJDubs (#9)

3. No Ordinary Love (Track #1)
Score: 39 (Average Rank: 4/9)
Biggest Fan(s): Fluttershy_Pony, Seanchan, HBJDUbs (#3)
Biggest Detractor(s): rwlh (#7)

2. Kiss of Life (Track #5)
Score: 47 (Average Rank: 3.33/9)
Biggest Fan(s): Fluttershy_Pony, Seanchan, rwlh (#2)
Biggest Detractor(s): Sheep007 (#6)

1. Mermaid (Track #9)
Score: 55 (Average Rank: 3.17/9)
Biggest Fan(s): Fluttershy_Pony, rwlh, HBJDubs (#1)
Biggest Detractor(s): Seanchan (#9)

Space

Ryo was the nominator and only voted for the first 16 so I think the non-bonus track version was the intent.