Um do Bell and Sebastian count? And what about Feist? Because I fucking love "When I was a young girl". I woke up to tht song a few times when I had my radio tuned into an alternative kinda radio station and it's pretty much thze best thing ever. So haunting!
Speaking of disappointments, I keep hearing about how all these new indie bands are just ripping off Joy Division/Pavement/whoever, but then when I check out those bands, it turns out these new "ripoff" bands are doing it like a trillion times better than the "pioneers" ever did. I checked out Joy Division's Substance, and outside of a couple songs, it's just a bunch of droning bass and 0 interesting hooks or decent vocal melodies. Interpol and whoever else is supposedly ripping off Joy Division are infinitely superior.
Got Pavement's Slanted and Enchated, and yeah it's a decent album, but I don't see what's so spectacular about it. The lyrics are all stream of consciousness bullshit, which is okay for intergalactic space rock like The Mars Volta but not for indie rock, which is supposed to have an emotional core.
Got Guided By Voices' Bee Thousand, and it didn't hold my attention at all. I can't remember a single lyric, riff, or anything from it.
Got Sonic Youth's Daydream Nation. Almost any decent song on the album is ruined by tuneless meandering that goes on for 5 minutes too long. The Sprawl is like 4 minutes of song and 4 minutes of noise.
I'm almost afraid to check out Television and The Pixies now.
Speaking of disappointments, I keep hearing about how all these new indie bands are just ripping off Joy Division/Pavement/whoever, but then when I check out those bands, it turns out these new "ripoff" bands are doing it like a trillion times better than the "pioneers" ever did. I checked out Joy Division's Substance, and outside of a couple songs, it's just a bunch of droning bass and 0 interesting hooks or decent vocal melodies. Interpol and whoever else is supposedly ripping off Joy Division are infinitely superior.
Got Pavement's Slanted and Enchated, and yeah it's a decent album, but I don't see what's so spectacular about it. The lyrics are all stream of consciousness bullshit, which is okay for intergalactic space rock like The Mars Volta but not for indie rock, which is supposed to have an emotional core.
Got Guided By Voices' Bee Thousand, and it didn't hold my attention at all. I can't remember a single lyric, riff, or anything from it.
Got Sonic Youth's Daydream Nation. Almost any decent song on the album is ruined by tuneless meandering that goes on for 5 minutes too long. The Sprawl is like 4 minutes of song and 4 minutes of noise.
I'm almost afraid to check out Television and The Pixies now.
I tend to feel similar, people say "Oh x band are just ripping off so and so" and then I listen to the orignal and find I prefer the imitators. I cant remember who said the quote I like but it's something like "Immature artists imitate, mature artists steal, bad artists deface what they take, good artists make it better/different"
I like listening to my favourite bands influences thoguh becasue it's interesting even if you find dont like it. Although the Pixies are good shit by any standard. I got into them because I heard "Smells Like Teen Spirit" was Nirvanas self confessed attempt to rip off "Gouge Away". So I listen and it's funny because the tracks are really similar in some ways, yet totally different, similar slow thudding bassline in the verse, two note guitar line, quiet verse and and shouty chorus and yet they're both totally different songs that cant really be compared. And the noise solo thing Joey Santiago does I've heard so many bands take.
Favourite Pixies songs:
Levitate Me
Planet of Sound
Gigantic
Dead
No 13 baby
Nimrods Son
Into the White
I've never listened to Television because although I hear them cited as an inflence a lot it's never of a band I like, although if someone gave me some songs I might give them a try. I got Sunny Day Real Estate's "Diary" recently though and I'm quite liking it.
Speaking of disappointments, I keep hearing about how all these new indie bands are just ripping off Joy Division/Pavement/whoever, but then when I check out those bands, it turns out these new "ripoff" bands are doing it like a trillion times better than the "pioneers" ever did. I checked out Joy Division's Substance, and outside of a couple songs, it's just a bunch of droning bass and 0 interesting hooks or decent vocal melodies. Interpol and whoever else is supposedly ripping off Joy Division are infinitely superior.
Got Pavement's Slanted and Enchated, and yeah it's a decent album, but I don't see what's so spectacular about it. The lyrics are all stream of consciousness bullshit, which is okay for intergalactic space rock like The Mars Volta but not for indie rock, which is supposed to have an emotional core.
Got Guided By Voices' Bee Thousand, and it didn't hold my attention at all. I can't remember a single lyric, riff, or anything from it.
Got Sonic Youth's Daydream Nation. Almost any decent song on the album is ruined by tuneless meandering that goes on for 5 minutes too long. The Sprawl is like 4 minutes of song and 4 minutes of noise.
I'm almost afraid to check out Television and The Pixies now.
Hmmm ... I dunno, I think Joy Division is infinitely better than Interpol, because I find it a lot more honest and less self-conscious for some reason. Maybe because they were genuinely original and not just aping someone else's style. I can't stand Interpol, but Joy Division really hits a nerve with me.
As for Television, I can say that the song "Marquee Moon" is incredible, and then the rest of that album is a disappointment compared to that song. It's a good album, no doubt, but that song is classic. If you listen to "Marquee Moon" and don't like it, well then, I'm not sure what to say.
I recently got a bunch of Gang of Four, which is supposed to be influential, but I haven't got down to listening to it just yet. I'm looking forward to it, though.
Sunny Day Real Estate's "How It Feels to Be Something On" is one of the most amazing prog rock albums, like ever. Pretty different from their other stuff, but it's godly. I also am digging Sufjan Stevens and Elliott Smith. During the Summer, I saw a lot of bands at NYC. By far, the best show I went to was The New Pornographers at Central Park. Crazy good stuff.
Speaking of disappointments, I keep hearing about how all these new indie bands are just ripping off Joy Division/Pavement/whoever, but then when I check out those bands, it turns out these new "ripoff" bands are doing it like a trillion times better than the "pioneers" ever did. I checked out Joy Division's Substance, and outside of a couple songs, it's just a bunch of droning bass and 0 interesting hooks or decent vocal melodies. Interpol and whoever else is supposedly ripping off Joy Division are infinitely superior.
Got Pavement's Slanted and Enchated, and yeah it's a decent album, but I don't see what's so spectacular about it. The lyrics are all stream of consciousness bullshit, which is okay for intergalactic space rock like The Mars Volta but not for indie rock, which is supposed to have an emotional core.
Got Guided By Voices' Bee Thousand, and it didn't hold my attention at all. I can't remember a single lyric, riff, or anything from it.
Got Sonic Youth's Daydream Nation. Almost any decent song on the album is ruined by tuneless meandering that goes on for 5 minutes too long. The Sprawl is like 4 minutes of song and 4 minutes of noise.
I'm almost afraid to check out Television and The Pixies now.
Speaking as someone who was rather underwhelmed by Guided By Voices' Bee Thousand (though I do think Alien Lanes is a lot better, as it has Game of Pricks which is amazing) and to a lesser extent Pavement, I wholeheartedly encourage you to listen to the Pixies. I don't know a lot of people who have been disappointed by them. Fantastic band any way you cut it.
Soooooo Sufjan Stevens. What album should I get to give him a chance.
None, cuz he sucks.
Nah, just kidding -- he only has two, right? And I think they're both pretty well liked and, based on my cursory listenings, fairly similar. I don't think you can go wrong either way.
I don't know anything about his first two albums, but what I've heard about them leads me to believe they're prety much forgettable. Then there are the two albums of his 50 States Project, Michigan and Illinois. Michigan is good, Illinois is, IMHO, better. The Avalanche is a bunch of outtakes from Illinois. Seven Swans is his acoustic Jesus album.
I'd start with Illinois, and if you like it, look into Michigan and The Avalanche.
Start with Illinois, definitely. And don't give up, I couldn't stand him at first. After four or five listens of the whole CD, I could not get enough. He's one of my favorites now.
Well, he's releasing htem all, plus a new one, in a 5-disc box set with some absolutely weird extras like stickers, drawings, stories, and more. There's something about Sufjan Stevens that makes wholesomeness cool.
One new song was released, Sister Winter, check out your favorite music blog for the link.
I really love when I think I hate a band on first impression and then listen and start liking them.
For instance, I thought I hated Pearl Jam becasue, although I've never listened to them much I know what they sound like. And I know that most bands who sound like them totally suck, same goes for Eddie Vedder-ish vocals.But then I saw them at Reading and they were pretty good, and I really like his voice, although I've heard a shit tonne of bad raspy "HHEEEYYEAAHH" singers Vedder just sounded relaxed and natural, not trying too hard just ocassionally putting a dirty grit on it.
Also, Thrice. Again I got turned off of them because I hate their peers. Modern rock with hardcore influences and screaming? Count me out. But their album Vhessu is pretty good, although apparantly its a total departure from their other stuff. It's a really ambitious, epic sounding record. It reminds me a bit of Muse, not in the sound at all, but more in the "Hey guys, lets just go totally OTT with the the piano and minor tonality and try make it sound like a movie soundtrack" ethic. And I love when bands do that.
I really love when I think I hate a band on first impression and then listen and start liking them.
For instance, I thought I hated Pearl Jam becasue, although I've never listened to them much I know what they sound like. And I know that most bands who sound like them totally suck, same goes for Eddie Vedder-ish vocals.But then I saw them at Reading and they were pretty good, and I really like his voice, although I've heard a shit tonne of bad raspy "HHEEEYYEAAHH" singers Vedder just sounded relaxed and natural, not trying too hard just ocassionally putting a dirty grit on it.
Also, Thrice. Again I got turned off of them because I hate their peers. Modern rock with hardcore influences and screaming? Count me out. But their album Vhessu is pretty good, although apparantly its a total departure from their other stuff. It's a really ambitious, epic sounding record. It reminds me a bit of Muse, not in the sound at all, but more in the "Hey guys, lets just go totally OTT with the the piano and minor tonality and try make it sound like a movie soundtrack" ethic. And I love when bands do that.
Yes. This is why Vheissu is good. Thrice are just very talented in general, so even when they play the hardcore-influenced stuff, it's good. I love it when bands do hardcore and it sounds clean. I like my hardcore hi-fi and my folk lo-fi. This is why old Against Me! is so fucking good.
Also, Thrice. Again I got turned off of them because I hate their peers. Modern rock with hardcore influences and screaming? Count me out. But their album Vhessu is pretty good, although apparantly its a total departure from their other stuff. It's a really ambitious, epic sounding record. It reminds me a bit of Muse, not in the sound at all, but more in the "Hey guys, lets just go totally OTT with the the piano and minor tonality and try make it sound like a movie soundtrack" ethic. And I love when bands do that.
Yes. This is why Vheissu is good. Thrice are just very talented in general, so even when they play the hardcore-influenced stuff, it's good. I love it when bands do hardcore and it sounds clean. I like my hardcore hi-fi and my folk lo-fi. This is why old Against Me! is so fucking good.
I'm the opposite, I like heavy/hardcore with as little polish as possible. Makes it seem to me to be too contrived if it's "clean".
I absolutely loved Thrice when I saw them live around '00, I think. They were touring with Samiam, it was such a great show and I stood in shock watching them. They played very well and I enjoyed it since all they had to play from was Identity Crisis. They lost me with the release of the second one and I never went back, Illusion Of Safety, just looked it up.
They had no merch table at the show. I was mighty pissed I didn't get to walk away with a thrice t-shirt or their cd. If I see someone live that impresses me I have to support them.
Thrice is decent becasue they realzie that heavy does not have to equla noisy.
Agaisnt me is good becasue thier lead singer sounds like a pirate
I totally agree with both of these statements.
What awesome typeketeering, by the way.
Against Me! will always hold a special place in my heart. I really don't like their newer stuff because they drifted away from the folk-punk sound, which was what I loved so much about them.
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Podlyyou unzipped me! it's all coming back! i don't like it!Registered Userregular
edited September 2006
Swords is pretty badass.
Of course they just break up when I get into them.
Um do Bell and Sebastian count? And what about Feist? Because I fucking love "When I was a young girl". I woke up to tht song a few times when I had my radio tuned into an alternative kinda radio station and it's pretty much thze best thing ever. So haunting!
Feist counts with me because she's great! She has a new album coming out this year too, should have collabs. with Jamie Lidell and Gonzales among others.
Lately I've been listening to:
Cazals (Next big thing - when their album comes out they'll be everywhere)
Broken Social Scene
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah
Guillemots
Hot Chip
Most of these bands I haven't heard of, which I guess means that I don't like alternative music very much. Although I hardly think my tastes are conventional. Well, whatever.
Belle & Sebastian's first two albums are great, the rest I can take or leave. Obviously, anyone who doesn't like those two albums is a bad person with an evil heart.
The White Stripes I have heard and really disliked. Apart from the fact that it's bland, standard MOR rock music, the guy sings with this really smug, smarmy tone that suggests that he thinks he's way too clever for this stupid shit that he's singing, which is fine when it's a song he wrote but when he does it to a real song it makes my blood boil.
All of The Mars Volta's Amputechture is up on their Myspace. Guess what? It still blows.
How the hell do you record a masterpiece like their debut album and then shoot downhill faster than a flaming jetliner with your following albums?
While I don't doubt that they will probably never surpass DITC (mostly due to the death of Jeremy Michael Ward and the fact that their egos are out of fucking control), how can you listen to a song like Tetragrammaton and say it blows?
All of The Mars Volta's Amputechture is up on their Myspace. Guess what? It still blows.
How the hell do you record a masterpiece like their debut album and then shoot downhill faster than a flaming jetliner with your following albums?
Tremulant was a masterpiece? It was a good teaser, but not that good. More of a "hey, this is what we are like live" kinda thing.
Anyway, back to Thrice. Illusion of Safety is top notch. Ambulance was a bit poppy for them, but still great. Viehssu just tried way too hard to be different. It was nothing but a bunch of half-songs. But thats what happens when each member tries to seperatley write their own music licks, and then they just mix and match them and call that an album. Ok, you wrote a nice little pianio line at 2:17 in, good job; doesn't make the whole song good.
Also, I bought it, and the booklet has this 3 page preface about who amazing and mature the band is now (like they were really so sophomoric before). I bought the album already, geez, you can stop selling it to me. It was all talk, no rock.
All of The Mars Volta's Amputechture is up on their Myspace. Guess what? It still blows.
How the hell do you record a masterpiece like their debut album and then shoot downhill faster than a flaming jetliner with your following albums?
While I don't doubt that they will probably never surpass DITC (mostly due to the death of Jeremy Michael Ward and the fact that their egos are out of fucking control), how can you listen to a song like Tetragrammaton and say it blows?
I like the beginning of Tetragrammton, but it just goes on for so long without staying interesting throughout. It should have been maybe 10 minutes long, especially since it gets really annoying towards the end.
That's the problem with this album. I can hear tons of great ideas, but they just drag them out past 10 minutes and it gets repetitive. I do like Vicarious Atonement and Asilos Magdalena a lot, two very good songs. Like I said, I like about half of Tetragrammaton. Vermicide is just uninteresting, it's a completely standard rock song, with none of TMV's energy or weirdness. Meccamputechture has a good intro and chorus, and like Tetragrammaton, about half of it is interesting, before it starts wandering aimlessly in noodly jazz ambience, although it does redeem itself somewhat with a kickass ending. Viscera Eyes has some good ideas too, but it also enters noodly territory in the middle and starts to drag. The last two songs are bullshit. Day of the Baphomets is like the epitome of TMV's prog-rock wankery with Omar trying to melt the fretboard every chance he gets, saxophones and trumpets squealing tunelessly all over the place, and a goddamn drum solo for Christ's sake. El Ciervo Vulnerado is the opposite end of TMV's bullshit- it's completely ambient and kind of just floats around for 9 minutes and goes nowhere.
Cambot- I can't tell if you're trying to be a smart-ass, but I was referring to De-Loused in the Comatorium, since Tremulant is only an EP.
I've been heavily into Explosions in the Sky, Russian Circles, and Minus the Bear lately. Loving it all, these bands are just so relaxing. Great driving music too.
I agree with you about a lot of that though. There's no arguing that they let themselves get carried away a lot, and end up fucking up some awesomeness. That's why I'm so god damned sick of Omar producing.
I've been heavily into Explosions in the Sky, Russian Circles, and Minus the Bear lately. Loving it all, these bands are just so relaxing. Great driving music too.
I saw Russian Circles a few days ago. They are so much better live. Really great set.
Posts
Got Pavement's Slanted and Enchated, and yeah it's a decent album, but I don't see what's so spectacular about it. The lyrics are all stream of consciousness bullshit, which is okay for intergalactic space rock like The Mars Volta but not for indie rock, which is supposed to have an emotional core.
Got Guided By Voices' Bee Thousand, and it didn't hold my attention at all. I can't remember a single lyric, riff, or anything from it.
Got Sonic Youth's Daydream Nation. Almost any decent song on the album is ruined by tuneless meandering that goes on for 5 minutes too long. The Sprawl is like 4 minutes of song and 4 minutes of noise.
I'm almost afraid to check out Television and The Pixies now.
I tend to feel similar, people say "Oh x band are just ripping off so and so" and then I listen to the orignal and find I prefer the imitators. I cant remember who said the quote I like but it's something like "Immature artists imitate, mature artists steal, bad artists deface what they take, good artists make it better/different"
I like listening to my favourite bands influences thoguh becasue it's interesting even if you find dont like it. Although the Pixies are good shit by any standard. I got into them because I heard "Smells Like Teen Spirit" was Nirvanas self confessed attempt to rip off "Gouge Away". So I listen and it's funny because the tracks are really similar in some ways, yet totally different, similar slow thudding bassline in the verse, two note guitar line, quiet verse and and shouty chorus and yet they're both totally different songs that cant really be compared. And the noise solo thing Joey Santiago does I've heard so many bands take.
Favourite Pixies songs:
Levitate Me
Planet of Sound
Gigantic
Dead
No 13 baby
Nimrods Son
Into the White
I've never listened to Television because although I hear them cited as an inflence a lot it's never of a band I like, although if someone gave me some songs I might give them a try. I got Sunny Day Real Estate's "Diary" recently though and I'm quite liking it.
As for Television, I can say that the song "Marquee Moon" is incredible, and then the rest of that album is a disappointment compared to that song. It's a good album, no doubt, but that song is classic. If you listen to "Marquee Moon" and don't like it, well then, I'm not sure what to say.
I recently got a bunch of Gang of Four, which is supposed to be influential, but I haven't got down to listening to it just yet. I'm looking forward to it, though.
Speaking as someone who was rather underwhelmed by Guided By Voices' Bee Thousand (though I do think Alien Lanes is a lot better, as it has Game of Pricks which is amazing) and to a lesser extent Pavement, I wholeheartedly encourage you to listen to the Pixies. I don't know a lot of people who have been disappointed by them. Fantastic band any way you cut it.
Nah, just kidding -- he only has two, right? And I think they're both pretty well liked and, based on my cursory listenings, fairly similar. I don't think you can go wrong either way.
I don't know anything about his first two albums, but what I've heard about them leads me to believe they're prety much forgettable. Then there are the two albums of his 50 States Project, Michigan and Illinois. Michigan is good, Illinois is, IMHO, better. The Avalanche is a bunch of outtakes from Illinois. Seven Swans is his acoustic Jesus album.
I'd start with Illinois, and if you like it, look into Michigan and The Avalanche.
Ever get those Christmas Albums he made? Yeah?
Well, he's releasing htem all, plus a new one, in a 5-disc box set with some absolutely weird extras like stickers, drawings, stories, and more. There's something about Sufjan Stevens that makes wholesomeness cool.
One new song was released, Sister Winter, check out your favorite music blog for the link.
For instance, I thought I hated Pearl Jam becasue, although I've never listened to them much I know what they sound like. And I know that most bands who sound like them totally suck, same goes for Eddie Vedder-ish vocals.But then I saw them at Reading and they were pretty good, and I really like his voice, although I've heard a shit tonne of bad raspy "HHEEEYYEAAHH" singers Vedder just sounded relaxed and natural, not trying too hard just ocassionally putting a dirty grit on it.
Also, Thrice. Again I got turned off of them because I hate their peers. Modern rock with hardcore influences and screaming? Count me out. But their album Vhessu is pretty good, although apparantly its a total departure from their other stuff. It's a really ambitious, epic sounding record. It reminds me a bit of Muse, not in the sound at all, but more in the "Hey guys, lets just go totally OTT with the the piano and minor tonality and try make it sound like a movie soundtrack" ethic. And I love when bands do that.
edit:animalcollectiveanimalcollectiveanimalcollective
I'm the opposite, I like heavy/hardcore with as little polish as possible. Makes it seem to me to be too contrived if it's "clean".
I absolutely loved Thrice when I saw them live around '00, I think. They were touring with Samiam, it was such a great show and I stood in shock watching them. They played very well and I enjoyed it since all they had to play from was Identity Crisis. They lost me with the release of the second one and I never went back, Illusion Of Safety, just looked it up.
They had no merch table at the show. I was mighty pissed I didn't get to walk away with a thrice t-shirt or their cd. If I see someone live that impresses me I have to support them.
Agaisnt me is good becasue thier lead singer sounds like a pirate
What awesome typeketeering, by the way.
Against Me! will always hold a special place in my heart. I really don't like their newer stuff because they drifted away from the folk-punk sound, which was what I loved so much about them.
Of course they just break up when I get into them.
Feist counts with me because she's great! She has a new album coming out this year too, should have collabs. with Jamie Lidell and Gonzales among others.
Lately I've been listening to:
Cazals (Next big thing - when their album comes out they'll be everywhere)
Broken Social Scene
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah
Guillemots
Hot Chip
I so hate when that happens.
*edit* just heard them, not bad, not bad at all.
They need to release something new reeeeeal quick because Im sick of every song being flogged on the radio. I enjoy it but I they get old fucking fast
They don't get played on the radio here nor do I actually listen to said radio
Cue: Drumhit!
Okay, aside from that, i'm still flogging Slint to death, but I've started to get into Dinosaur Jr. Thoose guys rock(ed).
Belle & Sebastian's first two albums are great, the rest I can take or leave. Obviously, anyone who doesn't like those two albums is a bad person with an evil heart.
The White Stripes I have heard and really disliked. Apart from the fact that it's bland, standard MOR rock music, the guy sings with this really smug, smarmy tone that suggests that he thinks he's way too clever for this stupid shit that he's singing, which is fine when it's a song he wrote but when he does it to a real song it makes my blood boil.
How the hell do you record a masterpiece like their debut album and then shoot downhill faster than a flaming jetliner with your following albums?
Anyway, back to Thrice. Illusion of Safety is top notch. Ambulance was a bit poppy for them, but still great. Viehssu just tried way too hard to be different. It was nothing but a bunch of half-songs. But thats what happens when each member tries to seperatley write their own music licks, and then they just mix and match them and call that an album. Ok, you wrote a nice little pianio line at 2:17 in, good job; doesn't make the whole song good.
Also, I bought it, and the booklet has this 3 page preface about who amazing and mature the band is now (like they were really so sophomoric before). I bought the album already, geez, you can stop selling it to me. It was all talk, no rock.
I like the beginning of Tetragrammton, but it just goes on for so long without staying interesting throughout. It should have been maybe 10 minutes long, especially since it gets really annoying towards the end.
That's the problem with this album. I can hear tons of great ideas, but they just drag them out past 10 minutes and it gets repetitive. I do like Vicarious Atonement and Asilos Magdalena a lot, two very good songs. Like I said, I like about half of Tetragrammaton. Vermicide is just uninteresting, it's a completely standard rock song, with none of TMV's energy or weirdness. Meccamputechture has a good intro and chorus, and like Tetragrammaton, about half of it is interesting, before it starts wandering aimlessly in noodly jazz ambience, although it does redeem itself somewhat with a kickass ending. Viscera Eyes has some good ideas too, but it also enters noodly territory in the middle and starts to drag. The last two songs are bullshit. Day of the Baphomets is like the epitome of TMV's prog-rock wankery with Omar trying to melt the fretboard every chance he gets, saxophones and trumpets squealing tunelessly all over the place, and a goddamn drum solo for Christ's sake. El Ciervo Vulnerado is the opposite end of TMV's bullshit- it's completely ambient and kind of just floats around for 9 minutes and goes nowhere.
Cambot- I can't tell if you're trying to be a smart-ass, but I was referring to De-Loused in the Comatorium, since Tremulant is only an EP.
Anyone want to beta read a paranormal mystery novella? Here's your chance.
stream
On topic, I've been really getting into Snow Patrol's "Final Straw"
and the last two minutes of Viscera Eyes rock.
I agree with you about a lot of that though. There's no arguing that they let themselves get carried away a lot, and end up fucking up some awesomeness. That's why I'm so god damned sick of Omar producing.