Board 8 > I rank 57 albums [ranking]

(+) Yeah! (+)

BlueCrystalTear may be pleased to know that I woke up this morning with invisible string in my head, hehe.

changmas posted...

I think your song ranking makes sense for someone who didn't really like the album because those are probably three of the most "normal" songs on the album

It's funny - anyone in the vgm community can tell you that I normally like "weird" music, certainly more than the average person. But I guess not all weird music is created equal! (Otherwise it wouldn't be weird.) I do appreciate the nomination for being so unique though.

NBIceman posted...

I'm gonna try to follow along with the top songs to some extent too

Nice

-hotdogturtle-- posted...

More writeups than I expected in one day.

dowolf posted...

this is going to be so hard to keep up with, good luck future me~

I'm happy to go a little slower if folks would prefer it. I'd rather go at a more manageable pace for keeping up if it means more discussion and engagement.

Thanks everybody for the positive comments. Glad you're all enjoying so far!

entered the topic and saw somebody had nominated Dead Silence, exciting!

oh

anyway I'm really surprised you didn't have more to say about Man Alive! To me that's the standout track on the album, with a notably faster pace and more energy than everything surrounding it. I enjoy Surprise Surprise a lot too but it's fair to say it's their weakest album just by being so... safe and middle of the road.

Man Alive! got second place but almost got first. It is indeed very catchy, one of the catchiest on the album. I think what pushed Show Me the Way over was I didn't like the ending of Man Alive! as much. But yeah, it could have zoomed into first on a different day.

rwlh posted...

I'm happy to go a little slower if folks would prefer it. I'd rather go at a more manageable pace for keeping up if it means more discussion and engagement.

really dig the current pace tbh, suppose mileage may vary though

3-4 per day sounds like a good rate to me.

Well, while we get that sorted out, I guess I can post one more.

-

53. Lights - The Listening
https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/9/2/4/AAeDEnAAE2h0.jpg

@ClyTheCool

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJWEE0TescvPcNZJU_LoO8nB5y9jMygqB

1. February Air
2. Second Go
3. Ice

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m_Iu8cxgKuk

From the first five seconds of Saviour I can tell this is going to be a tough sell because I really dislike this singers voice. A bit too cutesy for me, with plenty of autotune. But it could also work out well because I really like the other instruments, very refreshing and cool. Getting big CHVRCHES vibes overall. So well see!

Seems somebody put out the moon / Now the road is a minefield.

Drive My Soul doesnt have as exciting a soundscape but I dislike the singers voice less. Fair trade I guess?

Doing some reading and Lights is apparently one person. So I can narrow my pool of who to blame for this LOLOLOL

Eh this is fine. It all sort of blends together. I dont really love this super polished modern pop sound (yes I know its from 2009) and as I said I dont love Lightss voice. Theres not much here for me to grab onto. There are nominations I dislike more but had more to say about. The Listening is justsort of there.

Halfway through the album. Since I have literally nothing to say about the actual music, Im going to pull a Raetsel and talk about something unrelated. Did you know that raisin bran cereal goes surprisingly well with Greek yogurt? I discovered this on accident. Raisin bran also happens to be significantly cheaper than granola, which is what I always used to eat with Greek yogurt. The key ingredient is the raisins: they blend well with the yogurt and make a nice sweet/sour combination. Sometimes life gives us raisin bran with granola. We must be grateful for those times.

Why does February Air start like the jingle when you initiate a call on Discord. I have something positive to say about this song; I like the vocal layering.

So uh. This exists. I apparently listened to it. Those are my thoughts. Hope you enjoyed!

how is anything significantly cheaper than granola? it's just oats!

Granola is shockingly expensive!

Actually today I bought a cereal that was essentially "raisin bran PLUS granola," for the same exact price as normal raisin bran. Perhaps this will bridge the gap between worlds for me. I will keep you all abreast of this stunning new development.

Seems like a perfect pace to me, idk

CAUTION ERROR APPROACHING

I originally said ELO's Time was released in the 70s. I am wrong - Time came out in 1981. The other 1970s album besides The Dark Side of the Moon is Genesis's A Trick of the Tail, which came out in 1976. My apologies for the error.

CAUTION ERROR DEPARTING

I should probably mention that February Air is unavailable to me, idk if it is to anyone else but

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/1/1/5/AAbjkoAAE2kz.png

Plasman posted...

I should probably mention that February Air is unavailable to me, idk if it is to anyone else but

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OcYFl9bjnW0

Here's the MV version if the topic video is blocked for you (oh rwlh already posted it lol): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OcYFl9bjnW0

February Air is really cool. Her voice isn't the best, but the synths and production are really on-point. The string bridge is especially cool. Solid melody and everything, just unfortunate that her voice sounds like that, but it's not a huge detriment for me. Probably wouldn't listen to this album on my own, but I could see myself moderately enjoying it.

52. They Might Be Giants John Henry
https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/1/6/9/AAeDEnAAE2lp.jpg

@ViolentAbacus

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_kyGp5i4vuM-h_bezczSeuHn9aqY9ZXRvA

1. Snail Shell
2. I Should Be Allowed to Think
3. Out of Jail

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lDnWiLw5QtQ

I like Istanbul (Not Constantinople) from TMBG but I feel like Im missing the appeal of the band otherwise. They sort of feel like an in-joke Im not in on. Lets see if that holds true after listening to a whole album of theirs. Like Subliminal I get that its meant to be a joke on subliminal messaging with the frequent refrain of stare into the sun for as long as you can, but I dont find that particularly funny. Maybe its the singer, who always feels like hes laughing at me? This might be a deep-seated insecurity I have that I didnt know about until now, lmao.

Now Snail Shell, thats a cool song. I really like the vocals and all the pauses. I love a good musical pause. Sleeping in the Flowers feels a bit bland in comparison, which is weird because its so peppy, but I cant focus on it, which often indicates a lack of connection or interest. Very uneven album so far.

Apparently this is a somewhat different sound from their earlier albums, which are more synthetic. I probably would enjoy those more. This is just so s l o w. Youll see this critique in other writeups. I dont dislike slow songs, but I tend to dislike music that feels like it drags. Like Im eight songs in and Ive checked the clock at least five times. And Im not even halfway done! Its curious because John Henry doesnt have the problem I suspected it would, an in-jokey vibe. If anything its not playful enough! I feel like Im not getting a strong sense of personality. Spy has nice horn work at least. It also has this surreal likejam session thing at the end that I kind of like. Then we get O Do Not Forsake Me, which is more like the in-joke problem. TMBG cant seem to please me no matter what they do! As an aside, I generally dislike when it seems like lyrics go out of their way to not rhyme. I dont know why this bothers me but it always has. This automatically puts TMBG and their stream-of-consciousness lyrics at a large disadvantage.

Out of Jail is a nice late-album cut, a solid piece of 90s alt-rock. I will say, as I said above, theres some cool horn parts on the album, with deep notes that accentuate the other musical parts.

Overall I want to say this band probably isnt for me, but given that I like another song of theirs and that their earlier work is apparently a bit different, maybe Im wrong! But this album at least isnt.

(As an aside, all three Alternative Rock albums - again, none of which have much in common to me - make up half of the bottom six. Welp.)

All of the "Alt Rock" being at the bottom is a bit wild yeah lol. Though fwiw I think Mouth Moods takes a lot of alt rock in it too lol

Alternative Rock albums as the second genre instead of the first are celebrating right now!

Genre is slippery. Barenaked Ladies are listed as Pop Rock and Dave Matthews Band as Acoustic Rock, but Gordon and Crash probably have a lot in common with TMBG. I don't know, I'm no genre expert.

51. Miracle Musical Hawaii: Part II
Neo-Psychedelia, Art Pop
https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/2/5/5/AAeDEnAAE2m_.jpg

@jcgamer107

https://youtu.be/NbtsZJXnzFY

1. Dream Sweet in Sea Major
2. The Mind Electric
3. Black Rainbows

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uxyM7vhU0uU

From the first song, Miracle Musical attempts to emulate a time beyond memorythe 1950s, the most ancient of all times, with scratchy vocals and crackly crackles. That doesnt last long Isle Unto Thyself kicks into high gear as a poppy rock jam. Interestingly, the bands retro sensibilities remain intact: the singer croons like hes doing lounge, and the backup singers provide a sense of that 50s charm. There are modern touches though, like autotune and plenty of reverb.

I like the deep bass/frog vocals in Black Rainbows.

A lot of this is fine but not really gelling with me. The album overall makes me feel like Im missing some piece of understanding how to approach it. That happens to me sometimes, and once I get a better handle on context, I can approach things more clearly. But I couldnt find much info about this. Its a concept album of some kind, but I can barely make out the lyrics some of the time. However, a more pressing issue is the music just isnt resonating with me, and I dont know if context can help with that. Its all sort of blending together, which is strange because there are definitely distinguishable pieces: pianos and xylophones and fun singing. I just dont think its for me, and I cant offer up more in-depth feedback than that. Sorry!

The Mind Electric is neat at least. I can take or leave backwards-y type music but this ones cool.

Uhh unexpected hip-hop in Labyrinth. This isweird and out of nowhere.

My favorite song is the last one, Dream Sweet in Sea Major. Its evocative. I dont love it, but I guess it takes the top spot.

Sorry I dont have much to say on this one not all music is for everyone. I appreciate the nomination all the same!

Speaking of genre, I got a request to add the genres in the drop posts, so bug me if I forget to do that.

Woo hoo, I've made the top 50!

Top song update!

1. ???
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34. ???
35. ???
36. Electric Light Orchestra - Yours Truly, 2095
37. ???
38. ???
39. ???
40. ???
41. ???
42. ???
43. ???
44. ???
45. ???
46. ???
47. ???
48. They Might Be Giants - Snail Shell
49. Taylor Swift - invisible string
50. ???
51. ???
52. ???
53. 100 gecs - Frog on the Floor
54. ???
55. Billy Talent - Show Me the Way
56. Lights - February Air
57. Miracle Musical - Dream Sweet in Sea Major

Bottom filling out nicely, but there are some surprises coming soon!

I'm catching up on the topic! And committing myself to listening to the entirety of each #1 song posted, even if I want to skip them. Probably a lot of pain at the lower end of the list, but it will be worth it by the top half (I hope).

Agreed with Billy Talent sounding "safe". Somewhat generic, almost flowchart. That's not always a bad thing in every context but this song doesn't really do anything to make itself stand out.

Funny how the mere mention of putting Taylor Swift near the bottom of any ranking is enough to make some people upset. I'm the same way. It's not my style of music. I don't care how popular someone is "supposed to be", if they're in a genre that I don't listen to then I have no reason to put them on any pedestal, or go out of my way to "try" to like them. If I were making personal rankings of the songs in this topic then this one would probably be 57/57.

I remember "Dumbest Girl Alive" being the sample track when this album was nominated for Rank the Tracks. I don't think I voted for it, but I seem to remember it sounding much different than this song here. Based on the contrast between those two, and the constant comments about this group being very divisive, I still have no idea whether I'd like the rest of the album or not. I'd probably need a third song to tip the scale in order for me to take the plunge into listening to the rest.

Yours Truly, 2095 is my clear winner from page 1 of this topic, no hesitation. But I can imagine how an entire album of songs like this (with heavy emphasis on the narrative in the lyrics) can wear out its welcome. That's the only reason that I can imagine this album being rated so low, because from the sample alone it sounds like I'd rank it way higher.

Snail Shell is certainly something. The tone of his voice sounds a bit too nasal, and it doesn't feel like it has much direction compositionally. I feel like this is a case where I'd like some of the other tracks in the album more, but Snail Shell isn't great.

Dream Sweet in Sea Major has some interesting elements, the mix of synthetic and orchestral elements is pretty cool. Each movement provides something unique, some of which work, others that don't so much. Overall, it's a pretty neat experience. This is not an album I'd seek out on my own, and I feel like I'd be lukewarm to it if I listened to it.

I started listening to February Air and reading the writeup while the intro was still playing. Once the vocals started, I don't know if I was just preparing for the worst after reading the comment or what, but I kind of laughed a little bit. It wasn't as bad as I expected but I can also understand why someone wouldn't like it. As far as the album goes, it depends on this song. If this is considered a "slower" song and the rest of the album is mostly faster songs, then I'd probably like the whole thing. If every song is the same tempo as this one then I probably wouldn't be able to get into it.

I mainly know They Might Be Giants from other media that their music has been featured in. This song is kind of odd to me. It almost sounds like a "joke" song that's being presented "seriously", but I think that I'm actually wrong and it's just a regular normal song to begin with, and I'm listening to it in the wrong context due to preconceived notions? I don't know.

If Dream Sweet in Sea Major is the best song on the album then that doesn't bode well for the rest of the album. I guess it did some alright stuff near the end but I'm not sold on it. I looked up "Miracle Musical" to see who they were, and apparently they're related to Tally Hall, a band who (like TMBG) I only know from a sporadic bunch of individual songs. Somehow I feel like this explains a lot about this album and I can't even articulate why.

Lol oh no last place song. Right now I'd probably take Labyrinth as the best song, with Mind Electric and Murders close behind.

rwlh posted...

From the first song, Miracle Musical attempts to emulate a time beyond memory

I like this description

I've mentioned this before but to me the actual final track is Variations on a Cloud - it was a bonus track for preordering the album but I think it makes for a nice coda:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LJCLUhBzBM8

jcgamer107 posted...

I've mentioned this before but to me the actual final track is Variations on a Cloud - it was a bonus track for preordering the album but I think it makes for a nice coda:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LJCLUhBzBM8

This is a sweet song (as in cotton candy not as in gnarly), thanks for sharing. I'll say this for that album, it's certainly got a lot of variety.

50. Younha - END THEORY : Final Edition
K-Pop, Pop Rock, Ambient Pop
https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/6/8/3/AAeDEnAAE2tr.jpg

@DanKirby

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_mOQ09UqxZWj7zYclwRIP5Pc2hGs3grgOU

1. Wish
2. Oort Cloud
3. BIG PICTURE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MISEYe2gjjg

I do enjoy what little k-pop Ive heard so Im optimistic about this. The first track, Oort Cloud, has plenty of pop flourishes that I could easily see in an American pop song; it also has what sounds like a tap shoe bridge, so I automatically like it. Song 2, , is more rock-oriented fare; already two songs in and theres some variety, which is nice.

Wish immediately tickles my fancy. Did you ever listen to a song and know within three seconds you were going to like it? Thats Wish for me. Its happy k-pop. I tend to like that. By contrast, my arm made a reflexive motion to skip Highlight (but I didnt!). Not my thing. This is followed by several more glacially paced tracks. Also not my thing. I do appreciate the random bursts of English, like walking out the door in P.R.R.W. for some reason. P.R.R.W. actually has a lot of English.

There have seriously been like five songs in a row that drag for me. I miss the energy of the opening tracks. Im not much of a ballad type of person, so I keep looking at the clock to see how much longer each track will be. I dont inherently dislike slow songs at all, but this specific type of slow song doesnt do it for me. If it can be feasibly played at a during a slow dance in high school, I probably wont enjoy it very much.

Holy jesus why are all of these songs so slow when the first three songs were so much faster paced. Again: I dont automatically dislike slower songs. These just go on and on for me. Black hole is the first in like songs to pick up the pace. I will say the production in this album is really solid; everything sounds so crisp. Even if Im not into a thing I try to find something positive to say about it.

So yeah uhI liked the beginning of the album, and then it became something I liked considerably less. Ah well. Thems the breaks!

Yeah, I figured the ballads might end up being an issue. I like them, (though not as much as her more upbeat songs) but I can understand someone who isn't already a fan not caring for them too much.

Anyway, glad you at least liked some of the songs. Wish might be my favorite too, though it's close between it, Oort Cloud, and P.R.R.W. I'd also like to shout out Event Horizon, which was a massive hit in Korea last year, and her biggest since Password 486 (one of my favorites) back in 2007.

DanKirby posted...

Yeah, I figured the ballads might end up being an issue. I like them, (though not as much as her more upbeat songs) but I can understand someone who isn't already a fan not caring for them too much.

Anyway, glad you at least liked some of the songs. Wish might be my favorite too, though it's close between it, Oort Cloud, and P.R.R.W. I'd also like to shout out Event Horizon, which was a massive hit in Korea last year, and her biggest since Password 486 (one of my favorites) back in 2007.

Yeah I feel like some of these nominations were hindered by the album format. (And then some were helped! More on those later.) Taken as an individual song or two, I maybe wouldn't have minded a ballad here and there. But I had to judge the entire album, so when there were multiple in a row, it wore on me more, if that makes sense?

Wish was cool though. Spoiler for the song ranking - that's going to place the highest so far.

49. Boards of Canada Geogaddi
IDM
https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/9/4/7/AAeDEnAAE2xz.jpg

bea (not sure what account to tag you with but I'm sure you're following along)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vDkHR80rNtw

1. Gyroscope
2. 1969
3. Julie and Candy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rrr5WY_Nyaw

Diving right in! Music Is Math sounds very Earthbound-y, almost shoegazey in a way with that drone backing. Theres a lot going on here with that backing, some breakbeat, and a steady bass. Its not coming together as well as I maybe wish it would, but its a fairly compelling opening song (there was a 57-second intro but Im not counting that). Gyroscope, song 4 (song 3 is another interlude), is more my speed, with deep percussion undergirding everything. Theres also likea creepy child counting in the background? After a few minutes Gyroscope starts provoking anxiety, a not unwelcome feeling in music.

If I had to tag Geogaddi, I would say lo-fi and fuzzy. Every song up to the 20-minute mark has felt like something played through a tear in space and time: slightly off and echoing, and very evocative. I need to be in the right mood for this sort of music, but so far I havent found anything Id want to really revisit. The whole package feels, more than most other nominations, like something to take in total, not as individual tracks; the whole experience feels unique in that sense, only shared by a few other albums on the list.

There are a few styles on display in addition to lo-fuzz. 1969 is pretty trip-hop, with more of those distorted vocals. You Could Feel the Sky offers new advances in zipper sound effects. In between every(?) song is a little interlude that presents briefer musical ideas, a neat concept Ive only seen in hip-hop albums (which I often see as skits).

Honestly though I find Geogaddi pretty exhausting to listen to. This is intended to be a dark album, which I certainly dont mind. Its also a bit repetitive, which I also dont mind. But its dark, repetitive, and long, and each song is dronelike in its presentation, and the whole experience leaves me feels emotionally drained and even outright pained at times. I dont always mind that either, but I guess I do here. There have been other nominations that I outright disliked listening to, but no other album on this list has left me feeling soempty after listening to it as this one. And being empty is something I always mind.

Yeyeyeye top 50.

Pleasantly surprised my nom is still in!

Boards of Canada is so good but I can still understand it being low for sure.

Yeah Boards of Canada way too low, but Geogaddi requires a certain mood for sure. I haven't listened to most of these albums unfortunately, but definitely appreciating the writeups.

rwlh posted...

Honestly though I find Geogaddi pretty exhausting to listen to. This is intended to be a dark album, which I certainly dont mind.

Here's hoping Devil and God (my nom) hits that dark album feel correctly. Certainly more fast paced, transitions to banger after banger with like one interlude-y track (Untitled) in the whole package.

Wasn't expecting that. Nominator should've gone with Music Has the Right to Children!

Already tracked, now tagging. Doing some short-reactionary writeups to the listed "top song" of each on my own time, too. Will share at the end rather than in batches, since they're short enough it should only take a post or two.

Last of the bottom 10! I'm pretty sure this is my longest writeup.

-

48. Bjork - Vespertine
Art Pop, Electronic
https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/0/2/5/AAeDEnAAE2zB.jpg

@hotdogturtle

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL1BCBDDA394C775C9

1. Heirloom
2. Pagan Poetry
3. Undo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S00p6xjTQ7s

Story behind this album: for my turn in Rank the Tracks, I nominated three albums. Oneohtrix Point Nevers Replica is a personal favorite. The G-Darius soundtrack I picked because there was talk about doing some VGM. The last nomination was this, Bjorks Vespertine. Id never heard it before and would be going into the ranking topic as such. I picked it because it was one of, if not the actual, highest rated albums on Rate Your Music by a female musician. So hotdogturtle originally nominated Replica for this topic, then changed it to Vespertine, presumably to be cute. Ive heard some Bjork before but nothing, it seems, from this album. Ive saved this for near the end of the project, so lets see if its worth the (self-imposed) hype!

Hidden Place opens the album with something I normally like a bit of glitch. Its a genuinely spooky song, austere in production despite having lush instrumentation. I dont know what in the hell Bjork is singing about; I suspect that will be par for the course over the next 55 minutes. Three and a half minutes in and I have the sudden realization thatI dont like this song very much. Uh oh. (The last 30 seconds are cool.)

The second song, CocoonI also dont really like. Uh oh. Big uh oh.

The third songyeah, you get the point.

This feels like another big missing the point album for me. ELOs Time and Boards of Canadas Geogaddi are low albums with nigh universal acclaim that I didnt enjoy at all. I dont dislike Vespertine like I disliked those. Instead, three songs in, Im ambivalent, which in some regards is worse than dislike. Im not connecting to this music at all. It feels so distant, so alien, in a way I cant even begin to process. I dont dislike otherworldly music, far from it! But this feels like I have no idea how to even begin to approach it. I really dislike encountering music like this, not because I dont like to be challenged, but because I dont understand what the challenge even is. Im playing a game with untranslated rules.

All music isnt for everyone. I think I understand this now, after listening to a bunch of albums I didnt like, more than ever. My favorite songs are often the choices nobody cares about. Like this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rpM3yGLvhcw

Its a random song that sounds like nothing the rest of its soundtrack. Nobody else cares about it. But I love it. Its a 10. Im okay with loving something nobody else loves.

Im less okay with disliking something everything else likes. I always feel like Im the one whos missing some big cosmic point (see above) about something objectively good. Like its my fault. Is that true? I suspect sometimes it is not.

This brings me back to Vespertine, an album Im not connecting to in the slightest, whose songs all sound identical to me, whose emotional beats so resonant with other listeners are falling on unresponsive ears. I fundamentally dont get this. I dont understand the appeal, the acclaim, the adoration. And I think, on some level, thats okay. Its okay to not like everything. Its okay to not understand everything. Thats what makes us human.

Part of it is also the lyrics. I already said lyrics are tough for me. I dont internalize them a lot of the time; its only when I really connect with a song that they sink in. This is not the case with Vespertine. Pagan Poetry, which takes the top spot so far sort of arbitrarily, could have lyrics about cotton candy and Care Bears for all I know. I fundamentally cant absorb them without replaying the song (repeatedly) or reading a transcript. So Vespertine is already at a disadvantage. Bjorks singing is also tough in general for me to parse through her voice is very blurry in a way I have trouble with.

Its hard for me on a conceptual level to be confronted with an entire classification of some art form that I dont enjoy. I want to be the one with broad taste. I want to be the learned one. But sometimes I meet my limitations. And thats okay.

I typed all of that in the first seven songs. There are five more songs to go.

I genuinely cant think of much to comment on the music. The production is lush, with sweeping strings and the aforementioned austere glitchiness. There are some nice echoes on the vocals in Aurora. The whole effect is silence between the beats, darker, more fearful. Is that what Im supposed to get out of this? Maybe?

A sudden realization: I had this exact same reaction to Sigur Ros, when I listened to a few songs by them. Alien, confusing, unpleasant to some degree. Remind me to never go to Iceland. I might have a nervous breakdown. >_>;

The top three here are completely arbitrary. As I said, all of these songs sound absolutely identical to me. I wouldnt be able to pick any of them out of a lineupbut as soon as I say that, I get to Heirloom, which has some sort of funky beat to it, and this is very obviously going to be my favorite because its a song I can actually pay attention to and sure enough, I instantly can pick out the lyrics. Instantly. Its uncanny.

So yeah. Thats Vespertine. I think Ive pontificated enough for one writeup. All I can say in closing is Im pretty glad this didnt win the Rank the Tracks poll.

1. ???
2. ???
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19. ???
20. ???
21. ???
22. ???
23. ???
24. ???
25. ???
26. ???
27. ???
28. Younha - Wish
29. ???
30. ???
31. ???
32. ???
33. ???
34. ???
35. ???
36. Electric Light Orchestra - Yours Truly, 2095
37. ???
38. ???
39. ???
40. ???
41. ???
42. ???
43. ???
44. ???
45. ???
46. Boards of Canada - Gyroscope
47. ???
48. They Might Be Giants - Snail Shell
49. Taylor Swift - invisible string
50. ???
51. Bjork - Heirloom
52. ???
53. 100 gecs - Frog on the Floor
54. ???
55. Billy Talent - Show Me the Way
56. Lights - February Air
57. Miracle Musical - Dream Sweet in Sea Major

Younha's album got bottom 10, but Wish barely cracks the top half of songs!

tag

Vespertine is the first of these I've heard and I think it's crazy boring. The type of art pop from that era, and what has kinda come back up a bit somewhat recently, is all just really dull to me.

Geogaddi is such a slow burn, I'd agree that Music Has the Right to Children is the better album to dive into first (even if it's only a marginally faster burn)

*well shoot I'm surprised Vespertine fell this early, what an excellent record! But yeah definitely the type of thing that doesn't work for everyone

rwlh posted...

So hotdogturtle originally nominated Replica for this topic, then changed it to Vespertine, presumably to be cute.

(I said I would pre-emptively nominate either Replica or Vespertine on the assumption that one of the two would win Rank the Tracks and I would nominate the loser for this topic. But G-Darius won instead so I manually chose Vespertine over Replica to give you a new listening experience.)

(Haven't listened to the newest batch of songs yet, will comment later)

Nooooooooooooo Bjorkkkkkkkk

Post is still my favorite from her but she really don't miss with her albums

Vespertine is a crazy controversial drop here I feel. It does track with the way the drops have been going but damn this is just a crazy well-produced, beautiful experience front to back.

rwlh posted...

I always feel like Im the one whos missing some big cosmic point (see above) about something objectively good. Like its my fault. Is that true? I suspect sometimes it is not.

It's your taste. I mean, if it wasn't clear, I fully understand why you have some of these so low. Not everything is everyone's flavor, and that's how it's always been and always will be. You are allowed to have your opinion; if you don't get it, you don't get it. And believe me, T-Swift being Queen of Pop allows her to get away with things she shouldn't, such as making a sleepy album over an hour long. It's a mood piece and if you're not feeling that, you're not gonna like it.

Miracle Musical, which we did for Rank the Tracks back when I was a weekly mainstay in that, was bizarro for me (I may have only done that one for album rankings).

Salute to Bjork. I'd recommend not reading too much into ratings and acclaim right before listening to an album (or during)

i only know like 5 albums on this ranking and folklore was one of them - glad to see it low

Ok, Wish is probably my favorite top song so far. Amazing song. Orchestral and pop elements combined like this is one of my favorite things. Very well-produced song and Younha's voice is lovely. I could see myself really enjoying this album. May check it out in the distant future.

So I knew a lot of Boards of Canada, but I'd never actually listened to a full album by them all the way through. So, I decided to use this opportunity to listen to Geogaddi as well as Music Has the Right to Children. And honestly, I think I liked Geogaddi's dark ambience a bit more, although both were excellent albums. And I do agree with Gyroscope being the best track. Love the percussion and creepy vocal samples.

Vespertine is unfortunate to see this low, considering Bjrk is one of my favorite artists, and Vespertine is one of her best albums (only behind Homogenic). Heirloom wasn't a huge standout from the album to me, but it's alright. Pagan Poetry is far and away my favorite song from this album.

Do you think some of these albums could grow on you with repeat listens? One of the reasons I wouldn't want to do a project like this is just the time factor. I like to sit on the same record for at least a week or so - 57 albums would take a long time to fully appreciate.

Of course it's not always going to be the case, but some of my favorite records of all time were ones that didn't hit at all on first listen. Sigur Ros is actually a pretty good example.

Snake5555555555 posted...

It does track with the way the drops have been going

I'm curious about what patterns you seem to be noticing. I often struggle with finding common threads in music I like/dislike, so I'd love to hear any insight you might have!

BlueCrystalTear posted...

It's your taste. I mean, if it wasn't clear, I fully understand why you have some of these so low. Not everything is everyone's flavor, and that's how it's always been and always will be. You are allowed to have your opinion; if you don't get it, you don't get it.

Yeah, that's something I've really had to come to terms with during this project (as I outlined in my Vespertine writeup): the idea that it's okay to not like something that's "supposed to be good." It's probably rooted in some deep-seated insecurity I've only now become aware of, haha.

PIayer_0 posted...

Salute to Bjork. I'd recommend not reading too much into ratings and acclaim right before listening to an album (or during)

I tried to generally avoid it for this but I couldn't for Vespertine due to me looking it up beforehand. Though I did look up several albums as I was listening to them, I tried to not be too influenced by their reception - it was mostly to get context (as with Hawaii Part 2) or research into artist history or band lineup.

_Blur_ posted...

Do you think some of these albums could grow on you with repeat listens?

Yes, absolutely. You're right that it's an inherent limitation of the project. If I had infinite time, I'd certainly want to do some relistens. Of the drops so far, I think ELO's Time probably benefits the most from a relisten. But yeah, it's a shame I can't do that for all/most of them.