Board 8 > Rank the Tracks Week 71: Faith No More's Angel Dust (+ Guns n Roses 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, July 17 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).

Faith No More - Angel Dust track list:
1. Land of Sunshine
2. Caffeine
3. Midlife Crisis
4. RV
5. Smaller and Smaller
6. Everything's Ruined
7. Malpractice
8. Kindergarten
9. Be Aggressive
10. A Small Victory
11. Crack Hitler
12. Jizzlobber
13. Midnight Cowboy
14. Easy*
* Easy was not part of the original track list, but has been featured on releases since the following year

User Cycle:
7/17: Great_Paul (Avenged Sevenfold - Avenged Sevenfold)
7/24: jcgamer107 (Jack White - Fear of the Dawn)
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
11/20: RyoCaliente
11/27: darkx
12/4: neonreaper

Guns n Roses - Appetite for Destruction results

The participants sorted by deviation from final results:
Axl_Rose_85 (14)
neonreaper (16)
VeryInsane (18)
ChichiriMuyo (18)
darkx (18)
CasanovaZelos (20)
ZeroSignal (20)
Seanchan (20)
BlueCrystalTear (22)
HBJDubs (22)
plasmabeam (24)
igordebraga (24)
firefdr (26)
MZero (32)
Raetsel_Lapin (36)

General Album Comments

plasmabeam: My favorite album of all-time. With an exception of "Anything Goes," every song is an absolute banger.

CasanovaZelos: Of the several 80s hard rock albums I know, this feels like an obvious best - the problem being, I don't particularly like hard rock. I can't deny the talent on display, but it's also very much not my thing.

BlueCrystalTear: Upon relisten, there are definitely a few songs on here that reek of redundancy; it may have been better if they'd cut one of them out. Still, Slash and Izzy still rock the SHIT out of this, and their guitar work is what carries it the most.

neonreaper: I listened to this album so much back in the day. Nothing really weak here - even the album fillers get stuck in your head and have plenty of brilliant little elements imo.

igordebraga: Great album, I usually only skip Sweet Child because it's overplayed and I'm less sentimental each day.

Mzero: They all rock though. Not a single dud

HBJDubs: Very solid and consistent album, every song is either a 7 or 8/10, and they each have at least one part that makes it stick out so nothing feels lost in the shuffle.

Seanchan: Just an absolute banger of an album. Yes, the classic rock station staples are a little overplayed but the reason is that they're really fucking good! Whenever I hear that intro to Sweet Child O' Mine I know I'm going to find a reason to sit there until it's done. You don't change the station past Welcome to the Jungle. Paradise City makes me want to smash through billboards and "race west to the Wind Farm". Then you've got a whole next tier of songs that could be (were?) hit singles that get overshadowed like Nightrain, Mr. Brownstone, My Michelle, and Rocket Queen. And then the "bottom" tier which are all still pretty solid.

ChichiriMuyo: Why listen to Appetite For Destruction, Thor Love and Thunder is out now. Seriously, there are at least four GNR songs in it, including my top three from this album. Maybe it's because I'm not a big fan of the band, but Thor L+T alone gives me basically everything I'd want to hear from GNR.

darkx: Not even a little bit easy. Every track on here is a fucking banger.

Appetite for Destruction track ranking

12. You're Crazy (Track #10)
Score: 35 (Average Rank: 10.67/12)
Biggest Fan(s): MZero, Seanchan (#8)
Biggest Detractor(s): neonreaper, Axl_Rose_85, Raetsel_Lapin, darkx (#12)

plasmabeam: Overshadowed by the GN'R Lies version. Still a great high-energy song.

11. Anything Goes (Track #11)
Score: 40 (Average Rank: 10.47/12)
Biggest Fan(s): Raetsel_Lapin (#2)
Biggest Detractor(s): plasmabeam, CasanovaZelos, igordebraga, MZero, VeryInsane, ZeroSignal, HBJDubs, Seanchan (#12)

plasmabeam: The closest thing to filler on Appetite. They should've gone with the Hollywood Rose version, which has a little more meat to it. I never liked that the Appetite version had like two verses and a never-ending chorus to close out the song.

BlueCrystalTear: I happen to find this one a high-energy singalong. Haven't heard that other version though.

Raetsel_Lapin: I really quite like the instrumental portion of this song. It's brief and I can't point to a reason that I enjoy it so much, but I find it to be the definitive highlight of the album--if not one of the highlights of the entire series. I definitely get the arguments about the lyrics being too repetitive, but I think they're catchy and fun enough to avoid becoming actively annoying & I'm really just here for the solo anyway.

10. Out Ta Get Me (Track #4)
Score: 65 (Average Rank: 8.67/12)
Biggest Fan(s): Raetsel_Lapin, HBJDubs (#5)
Biggest Detractor(s): ChichiriMuyo (#12)

plasmabeam: Favorite lyric on the entire album: "Sometimes it's easy to forget where you're going / sometimes it's harder to leave."

9. Think About You (Track #8)
Score: 68 (Average Rank: 8.6/12)
Biggest Fan(s): MZero (#2)
Biggest Detractor(s): BlueCrystalTear, firefdr (#12)

plasmabeam: Grossly underrated. I'll never understand why this one never got more radio play. It's catchy with great guitar work. The outro is chilling and probably my favorite part.

8. My Michelle (Track #7)
Score: 82 (Average Rank: 7.73/12)
Biggest Fan(s): neonreaper (#2)
Biggest Detractor(s): Raetsel_Lapin (#11)

plasmabeam: The main riff might be my favorite from any GN'R song. Or from any song, period.

neonreaper: Always loved the riff. Love the intro. f'ing classic lyrics imo.

7. It's So Easy (Track #2)
Score: 108 (Average Rank: 6.27/12)
Biggest Fan(s): firefdr (#1)
Biggest Detractor(s): Seanchan (#11)

plasmabeam: That bass intro! This song is raw and nasty, and the infamous "Why don't you just...fuck off!" lyric always gives me the urge to thrust my middle finger in the air.

6. Nightrain (Track #3)
Score: 116 (Average Rank: 5.6/12)
Biggest Fan(s): plasmabeam, firefdr (#2)
Biggest Detractor(s): ChichiriMuyo (#11)

plasmabeam: Wild and endlessly fun. I don't drink, but this song helps me understand why so many people do.

5. Mr. Brownstone (Track #5)
Score: 118 (Average Rank: 5.27/12)
Biggest Fan(s): CasanovaZelos, ZeroSignal (#3)
Biggest Detractor(s): igordebraga, Raetsel_Lapin (#8)

plasmabeam: Catchy as hell, and I love how this and "It's So Easy" balance out the album's energy.

4. Paradise City (Track #6)
Score: 138 (Average Rank: 4.47/12)
Biggest Fan(s): VeryInsane (#1)
Biggest Detractor(s): MZero (#10)

plasmabeam: An absolute stomper. From the moment the whistle blows, this one is outta control. Kinda wish they had trimmed it down a bit (the chorus repeats too much), but overall it's a classic.

Raetsel_Lapin: A song that I wish ended after the third verse, instead of going with another chorus & pointlessly extended outro. I like the song up until that point... once it speeds up and decides to go as hard as it can, I lose all interest. This made the song rather impossible to rank properly... I could argue the high points are strong enough to move the song into fourth place & just as easily argue that having parts I hate should drag it down towards the bottom of the list. Ultimately, the song just kinda wound up near the middle of the list which is simultaneously "very appropriate for a song with both very high and low points" and "a completely unsatisfying response".

3. Rocket Queen (Track #12)
Score: 150 (Average Rank: 4.2/12)
Biggest Fan(s): neonreaper, Axl_Rose_85, Raetsel_Lapin, MZero (#1)
Biggest Detractor(s): darkx (#8)

plasmabeam: Absolutely sleazy bass intro. Love the way this song gets charged up before ending bittersweetly. Perfect way to close out the album.

neonreaper: I love this song. I love the textures of the guitars in the verses, the grooves, and the ending just breaks into a sappy ballad that just works. This is what an honest love song sounds like.

Axl_Rose_85: Infact this song is just behind November Rain and Estranged in my favorite songs of all time list

2. Sweet Child O' Mine (Track #9)
Score: 174 (Average Rank: 3.27/12)
Biggest Fan(s): CasanovaZelos, BlueCrystalTear, HBJDubs, Seanchan, darkx (#1)
Biggest Detractor(s): plasmabeam (#8)

plasmabeam: I'm not big on love songs, but The Solo and the "Where do we go now?" outro are excellent.

neonreaper: Another 10/10 classic.

1. Welcome to the Jungle (Track #1)
Score: 181 (Average Rank: 2.8/12)
Biggest Fan(s): plasmabeam, igordebraga, ZeroSignal, ChichiriMuyo (#1)
Biggest Detractor(s): firefdr (#7)

plasmabeam: Overplayed to hell and back, sure. But the first time I really heard this song during a commercial for GTA San Andreas, it ripped my 14-year-old brain apart and changed my life. Slash's intro, Axl's intensity, the sheer electricity this track carries...it's a miracle this thing exists.

neonreaper: Maybe the best side one song one from that era. It's a great song, a popular song, a perfect intro to an album.

Raetsel_Lapin: I wasn't looking forward to ranking this song. It's ludicrously overplayed and not a style of hard rock that I find appealing, so I'll often change the station the second it begins playing. I actually had it in next-to-last place in the initial draft of my rankings because my starting opinion was pretty close to actively hating the song. But upon further reflection, you know, I actually rather enjoy the third verse and the bridge/solo/segue that follow it... enough so that I started actively looking forward to hearing the song on subsequent relistens of the album. Probably the song that's had the largest increase from how I felt about it initially to where it eventually placed.

Rocket Queen at #3? Awesome.

My Michelle at #8? C'mon guys.

plasmabeam posted...

My Michelle at #8? C'mon guys.

I think that shows you how many fucking great songs are on this album though.

also tag

Bump

First listen done.

While I've heard the name Faith No More before, I really had no idea what type of music they did. For whatever reason, I thought maybe ska? CLEARLY that's not the case! A lot of heavy metal but more eclectic than I expected after the opening song. Reminded me the tiniest bit of Rain Dogs but not nearly as "out there" or fun. Overall wasn't really digging it but this is certainly one that needs more time between my ears.

Afterward, I had to know what their most popular song was on Spotify, which was Easy. Recognized that song in about 3 notes and was like "oooooooh THIIIIS song!" I'll ask the question then, why Angel Dust over the previous album with that big single, The Real Thing?

First listen down. It's... not my usual kind of thing, really, but I still enjoyed it nonetheless. I recognized Midlife Crisis from GTA San Andreas - talk about a mental archive trip! I definitely liked the instrumentation. Talented band that's all on the same page. My preliminary rankings definitely skew toward enjoying the less screamy stuff. That said, there were a lot of them that blurred together. The ones that didn't ended up firmly on top or on the bottom.

We'll see how a second listen goes.
~~
No way I get more than three listens in since this is an hour long.

Seanchan posted...

Afterward, I had to know what their most popular song was on Spotify, which was Easy. Recognized that song in about 3 notes and was like "oooooooh THIIIIS song!" I'll ask the question then, why Angel Dust over the previous album with that big single, The Real Thing?

I'm assuming you meant to say "Epic" here. From what I can tell, both of these albums are similarly regarded by critics, and Angel Dust is much higher on Rate Your Music. I'm not the biggest Faith No More fan, but I think it's fair to say a more consistent album (if Angel Dust is regarded as such - I haven't heard either in several years) is stronger than one with a big hit.

Mike Patton is the greatest vocalist in the history of the medium and second place is like 40% as talented

CasanovaZelos posted...

I'm assuming you meant to say "Epic" here. From what I can tell, both of these albums are similarly regarded by critics, and Angel Dust is much higher on Rate Your Music. I'm not the biggest Faith No More fan, but I think it's fair to say a more consistent album (if Angel Dust is regarded as such - I haven't heard either in several years) is stronger than one with a big hit.

LOL, yes, I did mean Epic.

My assumption is usually that the album with the big single will be the one with the most acclaim just due to higher listener-ship. For our ranking project, I think having that touchstone usually helps with bands I'm less familiar with, even if it also skews the results towards that track. In the end it's of no big consequence, and if Angel Dust is a better representation of Faith No More at its best then I'm glad we've covered it.

Seanchan posted...

My assumption is usually that the album with the big single will be the one with the most acclaim just due to higher listener-ship. For our ranking project, I think having that touchstone usually helps with bands I'm less familiar with, even if it also skews the results towards that track. In the end it's of no big consequence, and if Angel Dust is a better representation of Faith No More at its best then I'm glad we've covered it.

I was actually curious to see how much this holds up, as far as critical acclaim. I checked the top 10 artists on Acclaimed Music. The first album is their most acclaimed followed by the most acclaimed song off that album, with the second album being the one to contain their most acclaimed song.

The Beatles
Revolver - Tomorrow Never Knows (#6)
vs.
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (#2) - A Day in the Life

Bob Dylan:
Blonde on Blonde - Visions of Johanna (#6)
vs.
Highway 61 Revisited (#2) - Like a Rolling Stone

The Rolling Stones:
Exile on Main Street - Tumbling Dice (#8)
vs.
Out of Our Heads (#10) - I Can't Get No Satisfaction

David Bowie:
The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars - Ziggy Stardust (#5)
vs.
Heroes (#5) - Heroes

Bruce Springsteen:
Born to Run - Born to Run

Radiohead:
OK Computer - Paranoid Android

Neil Young:
After the Gold Rush - After the Gold Rush (#6)
vs.
Harvest (#2) - Heart of Gold

Led Zeppelin:
IV - Stairway to Heaven

Prince:
Sign O the Times - Sign O the Times (#5)
vs.
Purple Rain (#2) - When Doves Cry

The Beach Boys:
Pet Sounds - God Only Knows (#2)
vs.
Good Vibrations...had a complicated release

Just from these top 10 artists, only 3 have their 'biggest song' on their 'biggest album.' Even more have a most acclaimed album with the best song not even being ranked within their top 5. I feel like this consolidates more as we get into less acclaimed acts (who maybe only have one or two big albums), but I think there are plenty of bands who have a big early single and then make a more cohesive follow-up.

Until recently, Radiohead would have been the perfect example of this - "Creep" is still their most popular song by far (and was only recently overtaken by Paranoid Android on AM), but most people agree Pablo Honey is their worst album by a notable margin.

Part of nominating is finding an album that's rankable. I already know my nominations will have some raised eyebrows and I may take some flak for them (please don't kill me, guys), but I rejected quite a few albums before settling on the three I did. I have a list of criteria, as I think I've said before:

• Between 8 and 16 tracks - Fewer than 8 isn't enough to feel like enough to rank, but more than 16 is often intimidating and confusing.
• Shorter than an hour - I checked the time earlier when I had 47 minutes, which wasn't enough time to sneak in a listen of this hour-long album. I didn't rank some weeks since I don't want to listen to 70+ minutes of a genre I don't care for even a first time, let alone a second. I feel it more respectful to say "Not my thing, sorry." and be done with it than write a rant about why I hate it.
• Available online - Obviously, it has to be at least on YouTube (that's where I listen to these).
• Little redundancy - I complain about redundant albums sometimes, so I didn't want one on my slate. This week's has good variety within the same scope, which is how it should be. It's also not one big hit and a bunch of forgettable fluff, which is boring to rank. It's awesome when the big hit isn't the song I like most, but it's awful when it feels like they put all their effort into that one song.

An album I really wanted to nominate was 75 minutes and had 18 tracks and I felt that might be too much for people, and wouldn't get much support or votes if it did win. So I went with another good album from the same artist. I'm okay with that.

That data is fascinating, Zelos - and about what I'd have expected, honestly. A lot of albums that have the mega hit are the breakthrough, and then the artist follows it up with a better overall album. I'd rather nominate an album that's got several potential #1s than one that clearly runs away with it. I'm more likely to listen to the one I'm having a little trouble ranking several times, whereas "Greatest Hit and Other Songs" might get two spins and I'll be happy with whatever I have.

This one is now at two spins. Just gotta do one more in the next few days at minimum, maybe two.

CasanovaZelos posted...

Just from these top 10 artists, only 3 have their 'biggest song' on their 'biggest album.' Even more have a most acclaimed album with the best song not even being ranked within their top 5. I feel like this consolidates more as we get into less acclaimed acts (who maybe only have one or two big albums), but I think there are plenty of bands who have a big early single and then make a more cohesive follow-up.

That was my thought as well that it likely more true for smaller bands and/or those with less albums. That top 10 is stacked with artists with 10+ albums and/or 10+ big singles and/or have simply become iconic through the decades, so I'm not sure it's truly representative.

Of course, now I wonder about the results just for the bands we've covered! We've got the results for 2 above, but it's probably not possible to know for a chunk of them as they're probably not on a top 2500 list or whatever. Also, HOW HAVE WE ONLY COVERED 2 OF THOSE TOP 10 ARTISTS!?!

Seanchan posted...

Also, HOW HAVE WE ONLY COVERED 2 OF THOSE TOP 10 ARTISTS!?!

People most often nominate things they want to introduce other people to. None of those top ten artists needs any introduction.

BlueCrystalTear posted...

People most often nominate things they want to introduce other people to. None of those top ten artists needs any introduction.

Here's something crazy. Aside from The Beatles (and Radiohead because of this project), I'm pretty certain I've not heard any full, non-compilation albums from those artists! Plenty of singles, yes, but nothing other than that.

Seanchan posted...

Of course, now I wonder about the results just for the bands we've covered! We've got the results for 2 above, but it's probably not possible to know for a chunk of them as they're probably not on a top 2500 list or whatever. Also, HOW HAVE WE ONLY COVERED 2 OF THOSE TOP 10 ARTISTS!?!

Let's see a few

Gorillaz:
Demon Days - Feel Good, Inc. (#2)
vs.
Gorillaz (#3) - Clint Eastwood

Weezer:
The Blue Album - Buddy Holly

Nirvana:
Nevermind - Smells Like Teen Spirit

Phoenix:
Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix - 1901

Kanye West:
My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy - Runaway

Mastodon:
Leviathan - Blood & Thunder

Fleetwood Mac:
Rumours - Go Your Own Way

U2:
The Joshua Tree - With or Without You (#3)
vs.
Achtung Baby (#2) - One

Alice in Chains:
Dirt - Would?

...well then. Really, I think a big difference here is era? Which is to say, artists like The Beatles and David Bowie and Bob Dylan were putting out new records pretty much every year. This slows down over time, so a lot of these groups only have a handful of albums, so it's more likely the two match. This is especially true for groups like Nirvana and Alice in Chains, who really didn't have much time after their breakthrough to build upon it.

Seanchan posted...

Here's something crazy. Aside from The Beatles (and Radiohead because of this project), I'm pretty certain I've not heard any full, non-compilation albums from those artists! Plenty of singles, yes, but nothing other than that.

It's something I think was lost in our transition from group nominations to individual nominations. Since people know one of their choices have to make it through, they don't have a reason to try and nominate something others will recognize. I had considered having something like an AM week every five topics or so - where the choice is determined by the Acclaimed Music list instead of our personal nominations. But it feels too late to introduce something like that now.

Seanchan posted...

Here's something crazy. Aside from The Beatles (and Radiohead because of this project), I'm pretty certain I've not heard any full, non-compilation albums from those artists! Plenty of singles, yes, but nothing other than that.

Then maybe you should nominate three of them when it's your turn again. Or just listen on your own time to the albums the songs you like most are off of.

Last time, I nominated three albums from the early 80s that all had big songs but also underappreciated album tracks, ones that I wanted to get out there. This time... well you'll see >_>

Next time IDK what I'm gonna do yet, but I got four months to decide.

BlueCrystalTear posted...

Then maybe you should nominate three of them when it's your turn again. Or just listen on your own time to the albums the songs you like most are off of.

I wish I had the time! My months long podcast backlog is what I end up gravitating towards though. That's why I do this every week; it "forces" me to listen to usually new music. I also try not to have earbuds jammed in my head 24/7 and enjoy the sound of "city noise"/nature/silence when I can.

And yes, I have considered nominating things I've not heard fully before, even if that would be a little weird!

CasanovaZelos posted...

It's something I think was lost in our transition from group nominations to individual nominations. Since people know one of their choices have to make it through, they don't have a reason to try and nominate something others will recognize. I had considered having something like an AM week every five topics or so - where the choice is determined by the Acclaimed Music list instead of our personal nominations. But it feels too late to introduce something like that now.

I would be totally fine with introducing a "classic/acclaimed" week. As you alluded, with so many people signed up, each person only gets maybe 2 chances a year, so no one wants to "waste" their week. If you nominate a classic it just overwhelms the other choices (e.g. Hotel California and Appetite for Destruction). Maybe what you can do is just stick the "classic/acclaimed" as another "user" in the cycle. That seems fair in that it would allow us to cover classic artists/bands but doesn't push everyone's nomination week too far back.

Current user cycle is about four months (three times a year), as we've lost a few people whose accounts no longer exist or went inactive.

I nominated three albums I consider early 80s classics last time (Phil Collins' Face Value + Foreigner's 4 + Queen's The Game) but went in a wildly different direction this time. For my next one, I have no idea what I'm gonna do. I won't be giving it any thought until December, so what we get between now and then will play into it.

Nominating only one classic means it wins the poll, which is why I didn't this time. If you nominate one classic, you should nominate two others. So... I am fine with the idea of adding an "Acclaimed Music" week as another user. Just once per cycle. Maybe it'll be the top album from the top three artists that haven't been done yet. Which, yes, means repeat poll options if an album by one of the artists not chosen wasn't done in the interim.

BlueCrystalTear posted...

Current user cycle is about four months (three times a year), as we've lost a few people whose accounts no longer exist or went inactive.

Ah, I thought the user list suddenly looked shorter! Hopefully it wasn't anyone who had to change their account name due to the space thing.

BlueCrystalTear posted...

Just once per cycle. Maybe it'll be the top album from the top three artists that haven't been done yet. Which, yes, means repeat poll options if an album by one of the artists not chosen wasn't done in the interim.

That's basically what I was thinking the nominations would be, though I'd let CZ, as our host, deviate if there's an album anniversary or something like that.

I'm pretty sure repeats are allowed. Certainly I was very close to bringing back one of my noms again (even though I'm certain it'll lose again).

It will all depend on the frequency - for me, the ideal would be adding two or preferably three AM weeks and also treating my own like another. Then, about every 6-8 weeks, we could get one guaranteed "major" album. I would probably cycle between decades - so, the top 3 albums of the 60s we have yet to cover, then the 70s, and so on. This would turn a 21 week cycle into a 24 week cycle, which I don't think is too big of an increase, and I think it would relieve a certain pressure from the nomination process as people weigh the familiar against their own niche.

As a preview, here is how those decade polls would currently look (still following the one per artist rule, skipping already covered albums):

60s:
The Beach Boys - Pet Sounds
The Beatles - Revolver
Bob Dylan - Blonde on Blonde

70s:
Marvin Gaye - What's Going On
The Clash - London Calling
The Rolling Stones - Exile on Main St.

80s:
Public Enemy - It Takes A Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back
Michael Jackson - Thriller
The Smiths - The Queen is Dead

90s:
Massive Attack - Blue Lines
R.E.M. - Automatic for the People
Beck - Odelay

00s:
Arcade Fire - Funeral
Radiohead - Kid A
Wilco - Yankee Hotel Foxtrot

10s:
Kendrick Lamar - To Pimp a Butterfly
Frank Ocean - Channel Orange
David Bowie - Blackstar

I'm fond of the idea of adding AM weeks to our cycle as delineated on a decade-by-decade basis - my personal preference is that we cycle through the full set of decades every year, so about one AM week per seven/eight user select weeks. I agree that doing so would help cover the gaps resulting from our current nomination process. However, there are a few points I'd like to raise in relation to that:

First off, I think the 60s poll should be expanded to the 60s and before. This would begin including the (to me) surprising amount of acclaimed 50s albums in the rounds eventually while still accounting for the embryonic start of the album as a means of popular music consumption. Conversely, expanding the 10s poll in a similar way seems somewhat less essential to me even independent of AM currently lacking the stats with which to do so. The dust arguably has yet to settle on 20s albums, especially critically speaking.

I'm also skeptical about cycling a bunch of the same albums over and over again until they finally take. Would it just be tiresome for us to see two-thirds of the same poll as before most AM weeks? I think I would personally rather ditch all three albums regardless of the winner and cycle back to the other two eventually, though without any discussion, it's hard to say how alone I am in that. Perhaps we could use a formula based on how many best-of lists each album appears on to determine when losing albums should return to the AM polls, halving each album's effective total on loss?

Of course, there's some major downsides to that idea, the biggest one being the questionable correlation between the simple amount of lists each album from even a specific decade appears on and the way AM actually compiles rankings. In that sense, such an approach arguably sacrifices the point of AM polls in favor of practicality. The other key problem with this proposal is that it would force even Pet Sounds to wait multiple years for its next AM poll after a loss in its original poll. As such, it perhaps overcorrects for the problem of seeing two of the same albums as before (by decade) in most AM polls.

A milder version of this plan could consist of cycling out losing albums on an artist-by-artist basis, so that (for example) we need not wait to tackle the 51-minute Highway 61 Revisited until we've ranked the 73-minute Blonde on Blonde. These two are of course practically right next to each other on the AM rankings, and we'd accommodate artists with albums from the same decade far apart in the all-time rankings by making way for albums with higher rankings from different artists. For example, if Pet Sounds were to win the above 60s slate, our next three choices would be Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, Highway 61 Revisited, and Astral Weeks. The obvious flaw here is the risk that, say, we'd never get a chance to rank Revolver via the AM weeks in this scenario.

Lastly, if Rubber Soul and Hotel California (versus Appetite for Destruction, among others) are anything to go by, 'classic' albums are unlikely to affect our participation much unless they're at least metal adjacent. I don't think this is exactly a constructive point against having AM polls, though - more of a lament that they'll be mainly for the sake of us regulars rather than also helping attract new or otherwise infrequent participants.

On a somewhat related note, I'm planning for all three of my albums next week to fall under the classic label we've been discussing.

I really think we should just do it once per user cycle. Some of us are nominating big choices as it is. Having too many weeks that aren't user controlled may have the opposite of the intended effect by making people wait longer to have their week.

Perhaps the decade format will work. This way, there won't be repeat poll options for a significant length of time, since the bot would only go like twice a year. And if there are multiple top 100 albums from the same artist and one doesn't win a poll, they can alternate until one is picked. I don't think we'll have much to worry about if we do it like that.

i know i don't participate super often (i just find ranking the songs on an album a really hard task even when i have listened to the album) so i wouldn't worry too much about what i think but that list of albums looks super boring and i would rather just stick to stuff that at least someone here is passionate about for some reason

"A beautiful name for a really hideous drug."

Angel Dust is my favorite band's best album, and it's also influential and successful. The band has described it as five musicians pulling in separate directions and the result is sort of a spiderweb forming. I got this album on release day and played the living crap out of it - of all the albums that came out that year, this ended up sticking out the most for me.

At times, it's not easy to get into. There are a couple of singles, and a couple of album cuts that are easy to listen to, but other songs feel more experimental and schizophrenic. The album can be subversive. Patton's vocal talents are on display but I think almost every other FNM shows off his skills better, but by far his role as a bandmember is done best on this album. There's a give-and-take that was untenable for the band.

I guess for me, when I can sit around and think my thoughts, the vibe is very much the vibe of this album.
Everything's Ruined
At times, I've thought of this as my favorite song. We start off with a bit of trepidation in the keyboard, and then the bass kicks in the rest of the song, a cascade of sound, the song is soaring for a bit. And then we get to the vocals "We were so happy". I think everyone in the band shines. To me, it's a bit about being treated like an asset, about greed, about leverage.

j***lobber
Guilt and fear... a song about being afraid of going to jail. There's also a heavy undertone of sexual frustration. I guess this has always felt like feeling guilty about self-pleasure. The way the song builds to the "I hide the dirty minutes under my dirty mattress..." part has always been awesome for me.

Midlife Crisis - The best thing about this song is how they play it live - at the end of the bridge, when the song builds up to the final choruses, the band will stop. The crowd will sing the chorus. The band will then break into a different song, usually a cover song. Like Pokerface, or some motown hits, whatever. As that song ends they whip right back into the end of Midlife Crisis.

Caffeine
Land of Sunshine - The album opens up with two songs that aren't really based on specific concepts. Just Patton people watching and coming up with some lyrics.

Kindergarten - Man this song had a bit of nostalgia for the time. And now it's crazy - "film is flapping on the side of the projector" when is the last time they did that?

Crack Hitler - Action adventure song

A Small Victory - A soothing catchy single for the most part, but certain ends in a bit of a different fashion. It's like the band had an easy little single that wouldn't get much play and decided to almost sabotage it, which to me makes it better, but, yeah.

Malpractice
RV
Smaller and Smaller - I like the song but I think maybe with Caffeine and Malpractice on the album, it doesn't stand out.
Be Aggressive - The keyboardist (Roddy Bottum) is gay and wrote this song so Patton would have to sing about giving blow jobs. So of course they played this live all the time in front of hostile early 90s metal crowds.

Midnight Cowboy
Such a swaying, melancholy cover to close out the album. I listened to this album so much as a teenager that I often felt if I could pick one song to listen to when I die, it would be this one, because it would really just signify the end of something good.

Easy
A great cover of a great song.

I'm curious where "Easy" will land. It feels like the definitive big single that (in this case, very intentionally) goes against the band's usual style.

Also, I'm devastated to be the only vote for Elastica - not that the others aren't worthy but Elastica is the definition of an overlooked gem.

CasanovaZelos posted...

I'm curious where "Easy" will land. It feels like the definitive big single that (in this case, very intentionally) goes against the band's usual style.

Will be the most polarizing song on the album. That's more my cup of tea than the screamy stuff. I'm trying to be objective, too - there's only one song in this album I truly dislike.

neonreaper posted...

Be Aggressive - The keyboardist (Roddy Bottum) is gay and wrote this song so Patton would have to sing about giving blow jobs. So of course they played this live all the time in front of hostile early 90s metal crowds

This changes my perception of the song entriely. I thought he was signing about getting oral, and now I'm confused about the cheerleaders even more. I even wrote that they "were mouthing off about achieving penetration" but, uh...

CasanovaZelos posted...

Also, I'm devastated to be the only vote for Elastica - not that the others aren't worthy but Elastica is the definition of an overlooked gem.

I've no idea what Elastica is. I've said this before but I sure wish more people would give some background/insight on their nominations...

CasanovaZelos posted...

I'm curious where "Easy" will land. It feels like the definitive big single that (in this case, very intentionally) goes against the band's usual style.

It's a cover, right? I assumed it was since I'm 99% sure I've heard that song before and I wouldn't think FNM was the original.

Seanchan posted...

It's a cover, right? I assumed it was since I'm 99% sure I've heard that song before and I wouldn't think FNM was the original.

Yeah, it is a cover of Lionel Richie, who actually said he liked their take (according to my research).

Seanchan posted...

I've no idea what Elastica is. I've said this before but I sure wish more people would give some background/insight on their nominations...

(speaking as not the nominator but at least someone familiar)

All three choices this week are 90s alt-rock bands fronted by women - a clear consistent theme where, in my opinion, the strongest album is by the least known group.

I'm not quite sure how to sell one against the other - I think the big difference being Elastica is frenetic whereas, if memory serves, the other two are moodier. Elastica is a full 10 minutes shorter than the other two, running through 16 songs in 38 minutes.

Bump

1: Land of Sunshine
2: Midlife Crisis
3: Everything's Ruined
4: Kindergarten
5: A Small Victory
6: Crack Hitler
7: Be Aggressive
8: Malpractice
9: Smaller and Smaller
10: Caffeine
11: ****lobber
12: Midnight Cowboy
13: RV
14: Easy

...I should make sure to listen before leaving for the weekend

FoolFantastic posted...

...I should make sure to listen before leaving for the weekend

Your username tho

BlueCrystalTear posted...

Your username tho

I've been using FoolFantastic elsewhere for over a decade now and I was sort of tired of being 'Casanova'

Midlife Crisis
Land Of Sunshine
Smaller and Smaller
Be Aggressive
Kindergarten
Jizzlobber
A Small Victory
Caffeine
Crack Hitler
Everything's Ruined
Midnight Cowboy
Malpractice
Easy
RV

One of those albums I heard once probably a decade ago and never revisited - and I was very wrong for doing so. Every track here is great. My ranking almost feels randomized. Very happy this was chosen, as I see this album rocketing through my all-time list.

Midlife Crisis
Jizzlobber
Land of Sunshine
Be Aggressive
Malpractice
Smaller and Smaller
Everything's Ruined
Easy
A Small Victory
Kindergarten
Crack Hitler
RV
Caffeine
Midnight Cowboy

FoolFantastic posted...

Also, I'm devastated to be the only vote for Elastica - not that the others aren't worthy but Elastica is the definition of an overlooked gem.

I totally agree!

My rankings are probably going to be pretty high up on the outlier index here, and I'm fine with that. My taste in music is different than a lot of you. I don't like the "death metal" parts of this at all, and much prefer the "glam metal" aspects more similar to the Guns N Roses we did last week. While I didn't enjoy every song here, I can definitely say I liked a vast majority of them, so I'm glad this was chosen too.

1. Midlife Crisis
2. Easy - I like both the Lionel Richie version and this one. Amazing how a metal band can nail a balladeer's song so perfectly, with all the nuances. This is the kind of song I often like as it is.
3. A Small Victory
4. Everything's Ruined
5. Midnight Cowboy - I'm a big James Bond fan and finding out that this was a John Barry composition helped me enjoy it, as he's the guy largely responsible for the "Bond sound."
6. RV - Feels like a "story song" that stands out simply by not having a focus on the music. The fact that they pull this off next to all the riffs shows how talented they are.
7. Be Aggressive - Roddy always was a cunning linguist, wasn't he? Still feels weird that Patton actually went along with this if he's straight. But it's the cheerleaders that make this one stand out, and they most definitely are mouthing off.
8. Land of Sunshine - The song that grew on me the most with each subsequent listen.
9. Smaller and Smaller
10. Kindergarten
11. Crack Hitler - Filler! Good filler, though.
12. Caffeine
13. Malpractice - The screaming ruins the great interludes, making it nigh unlistenable. Fuck. The. Screaming.
14. Jizzlobber - Too long. Too screamy. Too deep into the album.

Further explanations by request.

andy sit my next week out

I have a feeling mine is gonna be very close to opposite of Andys

decided to give this one a second listen, largely because some of the tracks blended a bit in my mind and because I liked this one a little more than I expected

also just found out Courtney Love was in FNM O_O

STElNER posted...

andy sit my next week out

If you nominate something that I can't get through, I absolutely will. Again, the reason there were three songs I didn't particularly care for here are because they were too "screamy" and that's something I've never really been a fan of. The instrumentation here is absolutely fantastic on every track, and Patton has a perfect voice for the genre, but, again, not everything is for everyone, which is part of why we're doing this project. I still really liked this album.

And I'm actually going to make the opposite request of you and ask that you participate in my week.

i'll almost definitely listen to the album and pop in to comment

Malpractice
Caffeine
Jizzlobber
Smaller and Smaller
Everythings Ruined
Kindergarten
RV
Midlife Crisis
Land of Sunshine
A Small Victory
Crack Hitler
Be Aggressive
Easy
Midnight Cowboy

Bump

You are a topic headed for a land of sunshine

1. Easy
2. Everything's Ruined
3. A Small Victory
4. Land of Sunshine
5. Kindergarten
6. Midlife Crisis
7. Caffeine
8. Smaller and Smaller
9. Crack Hitler
10. RV
11. Jizzlobber
12. Malpractice
13. Be Aggressive
14. Midnight Cowboy

This one just didn't really land with me. I liked some of the instrumentation and the singer has talent but overall it didn't resonate. Picking Easy is a bit of a cop out, since it doesn't really fit the rest of the soundscape, but nothing really grabbed me.

I don't know; I did the best I could from three listens but I've a certain lack of confidence with this ranking. Doesn't help I'm finishing this up late Saturday night...