Board 8 > Rank the Tracks Week 68: Love's Forever Changes (+ blink-182 results)

(+) Yeah! (+)

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

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, June 26 at 8:00 AM EST - though if you are for whatever reason listening to the album around that time, just say so in the topic and I can delay a bit
7. You can sign up to be added to the user cycle - 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).

Love - Forever Changes track list:
1. Alone Again Or
2. A House is Not a Motel
3. Andmoreagain
4. The Daily Planet
5. Old Man
6. The Red Telephone
7. Maybe the People Would Be the Times or Between Clark and Hilldale
8. Live and Let Live
9. The Good Humor Man He Sees Everything Like This
10. Bummer in the Summer
11. You Set the Scene

User Cycle:
6/26: RyoCaliente (The White Stripes - Elephant)
7/3: darkx (Guns n Roses - Appetite for Destruction)
7/10: neonreaper
7/17: Great_Paul
7/24: jcgamer107
7/31: ChichiriMuyo
8/7: BlueCrystalTear
8/14: MetalmindStats
8/21: HBJDubs
8/28: Raetsel_Lapin
9/4: TheArkOfTurus
9/11: Steiner
9/18: Snake5555555555
9/25: Jesse_Custer
10/2: ZaziGuado
10/9: firefdr
10/16: Johnbobb
10/23: VeryInsane
10/30: CasanovaZelos
11/6: Seanchan
11/13: Giggsalot

blink-182 - Enema of the State results

The participants sorted by deviation from final results:
firefdr (12)
CasanovaZelos (12)
Great_Paul (14)
Raetsel_Lapin (16)
HBJDubs (24)
MetalmindStats (24)
ZeroSignal620 (32)
Seanchan (38)

General Album Comments

Seanchan: Fuck, it's like I somehow forgot just how good this album is. Been a while since I'd sat and listened to the full thing though. It was less sophomoric than I remembered but then again, I was constantly remembering the little skits and changed lyrics from their live album.

I'll also say, I certainly have a strong preference for my preferred lead singer. It isn't exactly surprising to me, it just was never quite so evident until I sat down to do a preliminary ranking.

Fell down the blink rabbit hole after my listen. Again, despite how much I loved the band back in the day, it was kind of surprising to me the seeming reach and import of the band's legacy. I certainly nominated the "right" blink album but Dude Ranch, Take Off Your Pants, and their self titled album are really fucking strong too.

I didn't realize they've put out 3 albums post break-up. I listened to a few random songs from those albums and I should probably listen to them for real at some point, even if they're not the same band, in makeup or lyrical content as the band I loved from my teenage years.

CasanovaZelos: This is an album that sits in a weird place in time for me, where I was old enough to remember the big singles playing on the radio and MTV but not old enough to have any meaningful opinion. One of those intimately familiar works that is hard to judge on its own merits because it helped shape my knowledge of music in the first place.

Seanchan: I'm so glad this album still holds up. I can't remove my nostalgia for it from my viewpoint but, compared to so much of the music from that time, this is one I'm not "embarrassed" by in 2022. Yes, it's squarely aimed at a teenaged audience (or at least capturing the teenaged mindset), but it's a fun, goofy album that doesn't really take itself too seriously and made me want to sing along.

Oh, and I am definitely locking up highest deviation this week. Ain't nobody else putting Wendy Clear at #1; that's just been a personal favorite of mine forever. And no one else will have The Party Song outside the bottom 3; I know objectively I should have that closer to the bottom but there's just something kind of frenetic and manic about it that I love. I've always felt Aliens Exist was the weakest song here; it's not bad, it's just outclassed, especially being sandwiched between Don't Leave Me and Going Away To College.

Enema of the State track ranking

12. Dysentery Gary (Track #6)
Score: 21 (Average Rank: 10.38/12)
Biggest Fan(s): ZeroSignal620 (#6)
Biggest Detractor(s): firefdr, Great_Paul, CasanovaZelos (#12)

11. The Party Song (Track #9)
Score: 26 (Average Rank: 9.75/12)
Biggest Fan(s): Seanchan (#4)
Biggest Detractor(s): Raetsel_Lapin, HBJDubs, ZeroSignal620 (#12)

10. Anthem (Track #12)
Score: 30 (Average Rank: 9.25/12)
Biggest Fan(s): HBJDubs (#4)
Biggest Detractor(s): Raetsel_Lapin, ZeroSignal620, Great_Paul (#11)

9. Aliens Exist (Track #3)
Score: 31 (Average Rank: 9.25/12)
Biggest Fan(s): firefdr (#3)
Biggest Detractor(s): Seanchan, MetalmindStats (#12)

8. Mutt (Track #10)
Score: 51 (Average Rank: 6.88/12)
Biggest Fan(s): ZeroSignal620 (#2)
Biggest Detractor(s): Seanchan (#11)

7. Wendy Clear (Track #11)
Score: 57 (Average Rank: 6.38/12)
Biggest Fan(s): Seanchan (#1)
Biggest Detractor(s): MetalmindStats (#10)

6. Dumpweed (Track #1)
Score: 57 (Average Rank: 6/12)
Biggest Fan(s): HBJDubs (#3)
Biggest Detractor(s): Raetsel_Lapin, ZeroSignal620 (#8)

5. Going Away to College (Track #4)
Score: 58 (Average Rank: 6/12)
Biggest Fan(s): Seanchan (#2)
Biggest Detractor(s): firefdr, Great_Paul (#8)

4. All The Small Things (Track #8)
Score: 72 (Average Rank: 4.5/12)
Biggest Fan(s): MetalmindStats (#2)
Biggest Detractor(s): ZeroSignal620 (#10)

3. Don't Leave Me (Track #2)
Score: 83 (Average Rank: 4/12)
Biggest Fan(s): Raetsel_Lapin, MetalmindStats (#1)
Biggest Detractor(s): HBJDubs (#9)

2. Adam's Song (Track #7)
Score: 92 (Average Rank: 3/12)
Biggest Fan(s): ZeroSignal620 (#1)
Biggest Detractor(s): Seanchan (#7)

1. What's My Age Again? (Track #5)
Score: 102 (Average Rank: 2.63/12)
Biggest Fan(s): HBJDubs, firefdr, Great_Paul, CasanovaZelos (#1)
Biggest Detractor(s): Seanchan (#8)

My 16th favorite album of all time, though it also took me years to fully appreciate it. Sort of operates as the antithesis of The Velvet Underground & Nico - both released in the same year to minimal attention only to be elevated to all-time classic status by a later generation. Unlike The Velvet Underground and Nico, Forever Changes is ostensibly accessible - this is the psychedelic sound popular at the time. But it is simultaneously more explorative and subtler than most of its contemporaries. An air of unease pervades much of the record, and the subtle details make this an album unlike any other, even 50+ years later.

My ranking:
Alone Again Or (#17 all-time)
A House is Not a Motel (#370)
You Set the Scene (#1078)
Andmoreagain (#2292)
The Red Telephone
Maybe the People Would Be the Times or Between Clark and Hilldale
Live and Let Live
Old Man
The Good Humor Man He Sees Everything Like This
Bummer in the Summer
The Daily Planet

Damn it I listened to Blink 182 but forgot to post rankings

I didn't have much interesting to say about it though, a lot of the songs felt pretty similar and my rankings probably wouldn't have deviated much from the results

Can't believe we only got 8 rankers for blink... I would have thought that album was right in B8's wheelhouse.

Did a first listen to Forever Changes yesterday. Definitely got some of that Beatles vibes from it. But older period Beatles; maybe Sgt. Peppers or White Album era. There was a couple of songs I was just waiting for Lennon or McCartney. Aside from that, it didn't immediately grab me. Definitely going to take some more listens to form an opinion.

I also expected blink-182 to be more in B8's wheelhouse, so I'm not sure what happened there. It's also a band I've rarely heard people discuss in the decades since.

Bump

for my noms - Angel Dust is successful and influential. Experimental, metal, schizophrenic, and one of my all time faves.

Deftones were a Nu Metal band and quickly became only Nu Metal adjacent and then quickly became their own thing and really worth checking this album and Koi No Yokan out imo. Deftones have pretty much always grown while not leaving their past behind.

Bloody Kisses is tongue-in-cheek gothic doom metal at its finest. I like a lot of their stuff better but this was a big album for them and it has no chance of winning the poll but I love them and felt like having them show up.

Seanchan posted...

Can't believe we only got 8 rankers for blink... I would have thought that album was right in B8's wheelhouse.

It's summer now and I found myself doing a lot more stuff all of a sudden, so I didn't have time last week. I'm also in a bit of a rut so trying to keep busy helps me think more clearly.

BTW I will try to listen at least twice this time but no guarantees

I was going to throw Blink a quick ranking but I had an extra busy weekend. Love Blink and Enema, it's one of the best pop-punk albums.

Yeah Juneteenth started becoming a big weekend and Fathers Day, made sense

1: A House is Not a Motel
2: You Set the Scene
3: Andmoreagain
4: The Red Telephone
5: Alone Again Or
6: The Daily Planet
7: Old Man
8: The Good Humor Man He Sees Everything...
9: Maybe the People Would Be the Times or...
10: Live and Let Live
11: Bummer in the Summer

The funny thing is, everyone got bumped up a week earlier because someone didn't submit nominations for their week. Ah well!

There was basically 4 tiers to Enema:

1. What's My Age Again?, Adam's Song
2. Don't Leave Me, All the Small Things
3. Going Away to College, Dumpweed, Wendy Clear, Mutt
4. Aliens Exist, Anthem, The Party Song, Dysentery Gary

Even with more rankers, I don't think that would have changed that much. The bottom 4 were the clear bottom 4, and would have been my guesses prior to the ranking. I was pleasantly surprised that Don't Leave Me got as high as it did, especially as a non-single. I was never the biggest fan of Adam's Song back in the day but it's a good song, despite being its lowest ranker.

Same kind of thing for What's My Age Again?. I'm pretty sure that was the first big single from the album, so maybe not a surprise it was #1. Again I was low ranker but that's more from the strength of the album overall rather than any hate for the song.

As for Blink 182, this sort of pop punk has never been my thing and plenty of bands came out in the very late 90s and 00s that totally missed me. But I also appreciate that they were important bands for a lot of people. It's just not music I think I could really rank.

I missed Mos Def because I just felt like I couldn't wrap my head around it - it's music I think is good but I also don't listen to very much. I would probably need a dozen spins to really feel good about it. Some albums I know well, some genres I understand well enough to rank after 1-3 listens. So I could give you maybe a top 3 Mos Def list but ranking that whole album, just would feel awkward. Same with the back half of Folklore - I could tell you my top songs but then the half dozen songs I don't care about, there's so little delineation that I end up letting perfect be the enemy of good.

First listen down.

I, uh, just finished the album and I don't even remember it. This basically turned into "forgettable background noise" like a mid-tier bar band, except for the last song. This is gonna take a couple more listens to appreciate.

Unrelated to the current week, I wish my nomination week had been just slightly delayed because the most famous track off my favorite album ever suddenly became popular again due to Stranger Things. I've been putting Hounds of Love off because it has two distinct halves that don't necessarily work well with the format, but it would have been nice to tackle it with an unexpected cultural spotlight.

I think Im gonna be ranking earlier now so I dont forget

Alone Again Or
Maybe the People Would Be The Times Or Between Clark and Hilldale
The Red Telephone
You Set The Scene
A House Is Not a Motel
Live and Let Live
Andmoreagain
The Good Humor Man He Sees Everything Like This
Bummer in the Summer
The Daily Planet
Old Man

Pretty good album, feels like a time capsule of similar 60s psychedelia from the same time period (Doors, Zombies etc)

Bump

Alone Again Or
A House Is Not A Motel
Live And Let Live
The Red Telephone
You Set The Scene
The Humor Man Sees In Everything Like This
Maybe The People Would Be The Times
Andmoreagain
Old Man
The Daily Planet
Bummer In The Summer

Good stuff

up

oh hey, it's my week! this is for me the pinnacle of the summer of love, the psychedelic movement and 60s guitar rock in general, so i'm very happy to introduce this to people. the arrangements here are incredible, the lyrics are packed with memorable one-liners, and at least half the songs have all-time melody lines too. a few of the minor tracks in the second half make it hard for me to call this flawless, but the album pacing here is so perfect that by the end it's easy to overlook those. absolutely magical stuff.

Alone Again Or
You Set the Scene
The Red Telephone
A House is Not a Motel
Maybe the People Would Be the Times or Between Clark and Hilldale
Andmoreagain
Live and Let Live
Old Man
The Daily Planet
The Good Humor Man He Sees Everything Like This
Bummer in the Summer

bump

Live And Let Live
You Set The Scene
Alone Again Or
The Daily Planet
Bummer In The Summer
Maybe the People Would Be the Times or Between Clark and Hilldale
The Red Telephone
The Good Humor Man He Sees Everything Like This
A House Is Not A Motel
Andmoreagain
Old Man

1. Alone Again Or
2. Maybe the People Would Be the Times or Between Clark and Hilldale
3. A House is Not a Motel
4. You Set the Scene
5. Bummer in the Summer
6. Live and Let Live
7. The Good Humor Man He Sees Everything Like This
8. The Daily Planet
9. The Red Telephone
10. Andmoreagain
11. Old Man

Actually did 4 listens to this because of the more low-key nature of the music. I agree with a lot of the previous comments. There is a certain forgettable "background noise" quality, but at the same time there's some fun instrumentation and lyrics. I didn't find this too difficult to rank the tracks, though I feel like there's a gap between my top 5 and my bottom 6.

On the album level I'm more torn. I think I'd listen to this again but, from a week of play, I wouldn't say this is a favorite of mine. I've slotted it into a large group of "yeah okay" albums from this cycle.

up

CasanovaZelos posted...

Unrelated to the current week, I wish my nomination week had been just slightly delayed because the most famous track off my favorite album ever suddenly became popular again due to Stranger Things. I've been putting Hounds of Love off because it has two distinct halves that don't necessarily work well with the format, but it would have been nice to tackle it with an unexpected cultural spotlight.

I think it's probably too late to do anything like this now, but I did consider inquiring about the possibility of allowing new user queue additions to slot in a month or so after their sign-ups some time ago. As it happens, Raetsel and Steiner getting their first weeks in May/June instead of August/September would have just barely allowed you to capitalize on Stranger Things for your own poll.

...Though I was apparently being self-serving of my future self by not proposing anything like this >_>

For something actually related to the current week, I'll once again be missing it, ugh. I've only managed to get one listen in so far, which is not reflective of my opinions about this album.

Never got around to a second listen. Been mad busy. Sorry, guys. Hopefully I'll have more time these next couple weeks but no guarantees.

MetalmindStats posted...

I did consider inquiring about the possibility of allowing new user queue additions to slot in a month or so after their sign-ups some time ago

This means everyone else gets pushed back. Not good if you're the type who plans for when your week is (i.e. me).