Perfect Albums

[Mo_Bandy]

In the world of single songs and playlist I still try to find time to listen to entire albums. I have an extensive collection of old vinyl and cds. During summer hurricanes, when we were trying to conserve power to phones, we were having some kick ass listening parties. Anyways, what is a perfect album to you?

Here is one. Sweet Life by Varnaline.

After the solitude of A Shot and a Beer, Anders Parker reassembled his touring band to make the pastoral rock record Sweet Life. Recorded in an old church in Upstate New York, the albums finds the band in high form. There is a spaciousness and grandeur to the sound of the record. All the songs are presented in high-fidelity, Technicolor sound.

"Gulf of Mexico" opens the record with a slow rolling wave of sound. Parker's yearning falsetto crests over the top, calling out over the band. Next comes "Northern Lights" with the wail of a pedal steel as the band moves down the tracks. Then comes the anger of "Now You're Dirt." The album bounds back and forth between darkness and light, gravity and levity, blood and air. The album closes with the title track, "Sweet Life," which opens with a string section. Slowly, from the background the band swells forward into a surging crush, taking the record to an epic close.

Really hard to share one song but this hits home.

Saviors

 

[LIDiver]

Three immediately come to mind….
(Two were released when I was a wee lad, props to my older sister to have good taste in music!)

Boston, Boston-
Emboldened driving rock with ground breaking instrumentation (a “special effects guitar”?! Ohhh, I want one.)

Fleetwood Mac, Rumors-
They finally coalesced into near perfection (and they crashed and burned soon after).

U2, The Joshua Tree-
The last vestiges of their Rock and Punk roots before they turned to the dark side and went Pop.

#tryingnottosoundlikeamusiccritic

 

[Mo_Bandy]

Three immediately come to mind….
(Two were released when I was a wee lad, props to my older sister to have good taste in music!)

Boston, Boston-
Emboldened driving rock with ground breaking instrumentation (a “special effects guitar”?! Ohhh, I want one.)

Fleetwood Mac, Rumors-
They finally coalesced into near perfection (and they crashed and burned soon after).

U2, The Joshua Tree-
The last vestiges of their Rock and Punk roots before they turned to the dark side and went Pop.

#tryingnottosoundlikeamusiccritic

Thanks! No arguments here. Probably need to listen to that Boston album. Only vaguely familiar with it. Cheers.

 

[kathyisgr65]

Id have to say
Guns and Roses - Appetite for destruction
Janes Addiction - Ritual de la Habitual
And
Hmmm...
Concrete Blonde - Mexican Moon

 

[orangecurious]

Neutral Milk Hotel - In The Aeroplane Over The Sea

R.E.M - New Adventures In Hi-Fi
possibly controversial, but they were always great at putting an album together and this just flows so well... it is an album for CD, there is only one "opener" (a slow one at that). Listen to the early records and you know where side 2 starts - great on vinyl, but it can be a bit of a shock on CD, or when listened to in one go.

Cassandra Jenkins - An Overview On Phenomenal Nature
She just nailed this, captured the mood at the time and made a thing of beauty

i am tempted to say Uncle Tupelo - Still Feel Gone, but it is the sound of two bands forming and playing their best songs before they split

Buffalo Tom - Let Me Come Over

Kate Bush - Hounds Of Love... although it is very much two completely different sides, but each is a masterpiece - the "singles" and then the concept part.

 

[Mo_Bandy]

Neutral Milk Hotel - In The Aeroplane Over The Sea

R.E.M - New Adventures In Hi-Fi
possibly controversial, but they were always great at putting an album together and this just flows so well... it is an album for CD, there is only one "opener" (a slow one at that). Listen to the early records and you know where side 2 starts - great on vinyl, but it can be a bit of a shock on CD, or when listened to in one go.

Cassandra Jenkins - An Overview On Phenomenal Nature
She just nailed this, captured the mood at the time and made a thing of beauty

i am tempted to say Uncle Tupelo - Still Feel Gone, but it is the sound of two bands forming and playing their best songs before they split

Buffalo Tom - Let Me Come Over

Kate Bush - Hounds Of Love... although it is very much two completely different sides, but each is a masterpiece - the "singles" and then the concept part.

If I was making an extensive list probably 3 of these albums would be includes. Neutral Milk Hotel, REMs New Adventure and Uncle Tupelo Still Feel Gone. Funny, there are very few albums I am aware of that sound anything like these. I consider all three to be fucking masterpieces.

I am mostly familiar and like your other choices. Buffalo Tom is really underrated.

Need to listen to Casandra Jenkins though.

 

[Swingingbimn71]

Darkside of the moon - pink floyd

 

[deltablues65]

Darkside of the moon - pink floyd

In the top 200 albums of all time for 741 weeks!.....and I will add "Wish you were Here" to that as well

 

[Lord Pmann]

Ryan Adams “Gold”

Damien Rice “O” and “9”

David Gray “White Ladder”

 

[Mo_Bandy]

Ryan Adams “Gold”

Damien Rice “O” and “9”

David Gray “White Ladder”

Thanks and prefer RA Heartbreaker but he has some good ones.

 

[BongoGal]

The Stone Roses - The Stone Roses

 

[kinkincguy]

Dog Man Star - Suede (or The London Suede if you are in the US)

 

[Mo_Bandy]

The Stone Roses - The Stone Roses

Dog Man Star - Suede (or The London Suede if you are in the US)

Both excellent choices. I think you cant call yourself a music fan if you dont love the SRs. Also I am quite a bit more familiar with Suede’s ST and probably need to give Dog Man Star more listens.

 

[Mo_Bandy]

I know there are other Black Lips albums that their hardcore fans would probably pick but I love every song on Good Bad Not Evil. Saw them live around this time at old Orpheum in Tampa and it was a goddamn near riot.

 

[deltablues65]

I will also go with "Amused to Death" by Roger Water's with a nod to Jeff Beck whom played guitar on the opening track, and this in turn led to "In the Flesh" (Live)(2 album/cd set) which is equally good!

 

[BongoGal]

I know there are other Black Lips albums that their hardcore fans would probably pick but I love every song on Good Bad Not Evil. Saw them live around this time at old Orpheum in Tampa and it was a goddamn near riot.

O Katrina!

 

[Mrtenant]

There are many, but here are a few

Rush - Permanent Waves
ACDC - Back In Black
Journey - Escape
KISS - Destroyer
Led Zeppelin - Physical Graffiti

 

[deltablues65]

"Captured"(live double album) by Journey......The band had so much energy and Steve's voice was in fine form, always enjoyed the double vocal of Steve and Greg Rolie on "Just the Same Way"

 

[_BassAckwards_]

Might not be popular listening, but in the world of progressive metal, these come to mind.

Tool - Lateralus
Opeth - Blackwater Park
Queensryche - Operation Mindcrime

 

[Mrtenant]

"Captured"(live double album) by Journey......The band had so much energy and Steve's voice was in fine form, always enjoyed the double vocal of Steve and Greg Rolie on "Just the Same Way"

For me, the big draw from Journey was Neal Schon's guitar play and song writing. Stone In Love is a masterpiece of instruments and vocals.

 

[deltablues65]

For me, the big draw from Journey was Neal Schon's guitar play and song writing. Stone In Love is a masterpiece of instruments and vocals.

I remember hearing many years ago a concert being broadcast on AM radio in 1981.....Neal Schon doing a guitar solo, prior to "Wheel in the Sky", and to this day, I still love that guitar solo....That concert was many years later released as a CD/DVD combo "Live in Houston"

 

[deltablues65]

 

[cltsea2]

Allman Brothers at Fillmore East

 

[SandraMaus]

The Libertines - The Libertines
Depeche Mode -101
Paul van Dyk - 45 RPM
Frank Turner - England Keep MY Bones
Florence and the Machine - Ceremonials

 

[BongoGal]

The Libertines - The Libertines

Yes! Great album!