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  1. In Memory of LAJ_FETT: Please share your remembrances and condolences HERE

Amph What Album Did You Just Hear?

Discussion in 'Community' started by Rogue1-and-a-half, Oct 7, 2014.

  1. Ender Sai

    Ender Sai Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Feb 18, 2001
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    Nine Inch Nails, Ghosts I - IV

    When I'm at work I prefer to have non-lyrical music playing so I've no words to focus on. So, I run the gamut from ambient to post-rock to classical on any given day.

    This reminds me a bit, conceptually, of the soundtrack Nine Inch Nails did for Quake back in the day. Tonally, they're very different, but it's that uniquely Reznorian sound across minor electronic... vignettes, really, more than songs.

    Nothing will compare, in my mind, to the track A Warm Place on Downward Spiral (or the sublime Aphex Twin track At the Heart of it All on Further Down the Spiral) but this will do for now. It's great background music.
     
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  2. Ender Sai

    Ender Sai Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Feb 18, 2001
    [​IMG]

    Mogwai, The Hawk is Howling
     
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  3. Leoluca Randisi

    Leoluca Randisi Jedi Grand Master star 6

    Registered:
    Jun 24, 2014
  4. tom

    tom Chosen One star 8

    Registered:
    Mar 14, 2004
    kendrick lamar - to pimp a butterfly. about 8 times in a row.
     
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  5. Frank T.

    Frank T. Force Ghost star 6

    Registered:
    Sep 2, 2012
    To Pimp a Butterfly

    I need to throw a party.

    This is not uncommon.
     
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  6. Ender Sai

    Ender Sai Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Feb 18, 2001
    [​IMG]

    Richard Wagner: Overtures and Orchestral Music
    Performed by the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra; conducted by Maurice Jansons

    A kind of "best of" for Wagner's works, combining some of his most memorable pieces from his greatest operas, sans operatic vocals of course. If you're unsure about Wagner, a man who influenced John Williams greatly (you'll hear it as you listen), this is a great place to start.

    Of note, the Prelude to, and Liebestrod from Tristan und Isolde is probably some of the most stirringly beautiful music I've heard, ever; the overture from Tännhäuser is sweeping and glorious and the funeral march from Die Götterdämmerung (The Twilight of the Gods) will so invoke moments of the Star Wars score as to win you over. Of course, there's a rendition of the famous Ride of the Valkyries from Die Walküre - which, like Die Götterdämmerung, is one of the four operas in the epic ring cycle.

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    The Ring Without Words
    Another good starting point is Lorin Maazel's work to condense the four opera Der Ring Des Nigelungen into one consistent orchestral experience.

    Both highly recommended.
     
  7. Isotope217

    Isotope217 Jedi Master star 2

    Registered:
    Nov 24, 2002
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    The Essential Bix Beiderbecke --

    Doesn't seem essential without 'In a Mist', 'Davenport Blues' and 'Flashes', but a nice overview. 'Singin the Blues' is a classic. Bix drank himself to death they say.


     
  8. DebonaireNerd

    DebonaireNerd Jedi Grand Master star 5

    Registered:
    Nov 9, 2012

    I'm still disappointed we never got to hear the treatment he had in mind for Doom 3.
     
  9. DebonaireNerd

    DebonaireNerd Jedi Grand Master star 5

    Registered:
    Nov 9, 2012
  10. Lady Warp Spasm

    Lady Warp Spasm Jedi Padawan star 1

    Registered:
    Feb 19, 2015
    I've only been waiting on this album for at least 5 years, but Suzukiton's 2nd album. This was posted at bandcamp last month. Glad to have stumbled across it.
     
  11. Isotope217

    Isotope217 Jedi Master star 2

    Registered:
    Nov 24, 2002
    Pulled out of the drawer, Throwing Muses -- The Real Ramona

    Featuring Kristin Hersh and Tanya Donnelly, thoroughly solid, well-written and engaging throughout, it takes me back to the early 90's in a good way. The one-two alternating punch of "Hook In Her Head" and "Not Too Soon" are the centerpieces of the album for me.


     
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  12. Deputy Rick Grimes

    Deputy Rick Grimes Jedi Grand Master star 6

    Registered:
    Sep 3, 2012
  13. Rogue1-and-a-half

    Rogue1-and-a-half Manager Emeritus who is writing his masterpiece star 9 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Nov 2, 2000
    The Electric Lady (2013) – Janelle Monae

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    I’ll just tip my hand. Monae remains one of the most brilliant and exciting musical artists of the current day and with The Electric Lady, she just continues to solidify that. Like a lot of other current artists, she’s fascinated with crafting some sort of a weird conceptual story out of her music and I will admit that this aspect of her music is of no interest to me at all, but luckily the music is great enough to stand on its own. This epic album is a solid nineteen tracks and only the three short interlude tracks are less than absolutely brilliant. Plus I got the special edition which contains four bonus tracks: two remixes, an original and a sweet, sad cover of I Want You Back. And I’d say every song on here is downright four stars. The thing most exciting about Monae is the facility she has with shifting and slipping through genres and styles. There’s the seventies-style love duet Prime Time, the shuffling rave Dance Apocalyptic, the soothing ballad What an Experience, the epic gospel shouter Victory, the luminously beautiful bossa Look Into My Eyes. And I could go on. This album is nothing short of miraculously great. 4 stars.

    tl;dr – Monae’s genre-hopping genius is on full display on this epic, consistently great album. 4 stars.

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  14. A Chorus of Disapproval

    A Chorus of Disapproval Head Admin & TV Screaming Service star 10 Staff Member Administrator

    Registered:
    Aug 19, 2003
  15. Rogue1-and-a-half

    Rogue1-and-a-half Manager Emeritus who is writing his masterpiece star 9 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Nov 2, 2000
    A Beautiful Glow (2001) – Rock N Roll Worship Circus

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    Rock N Roll Worship Circus, to my mind, really redefined what worship music could be back in 2001; they laid down this amazing template of worship music as something very different and pointed in a new, exciting direction. Unfortunately, no one was paying attention. But this record just holds up as a completely vibrant take on Christian music. The lyrics are perfect worship lyrics, explicitly Christian, but this is an album I recommend even to non-Christians simply because the music is so brilliant. The band takes a lot of their feel and style from the sixties & seventies and this lends the songs a really wonderful bounce and joie de vivre. The rollicking Morning Glory, with its propulsive organ, high energy level and brilliant drum riffs is probably the best example, but the chiming, Beatles-esque Great Big Love is also a standout. I really love Holy Drifter as well, a surprisingly menacing minor-key song that conjures a tremendous amount of dread and fear around the figure of Jesus as a confrontational, terrifying figure of incredible power. The guitar solo in this song is just magnificent. Then there’s the sitar-drenched album closer Loveliest Bride, a lengthy jam that recalls the psychedelic music of the sixties and the alternative rock of the early nineties. The lyrics are earnest and sincerely devotional, which isn’t a problem for me; this is one of the most moving albums about God I’ve ever heard, I think, really. But even for those who don’t believe, Rock N Roll Worship Circus lives up to their name and more. Highly recommended. 4 stars.

    tl;dr – exciting, vibrant music explodes Christian music into an art form that even non-believers can get behind. 4 stars.

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  16. Rogue1-and-a-half

    Rogue1-and-a-half Manager Emeritus who is writing his masterpiece star 9 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Nov 2, 2000
    Official Live: 101 Proof (1997) - Pantera

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    So, I could easily make this one of my shortest reviews ever by just saying, “Pantera live.” Because, seriously, you know what you’re getting, right? And you know whether you’ll like it. Well, I did. Both knew and liked. But it kind of goes without saying that this album is thunderingly ferocious and also that the instrumental talents on display here are really without parallel. It’s just a lot of head-banging fun. Paul remains one of the three or four best drummers ever and there are some really wonderful breakdowns with Rex Brown here. Brown’s always been a vastly underrated bass player, I think; no one talks about him when they talk about Paul and Dimebag, but his pulsing thunderous bass is indispensable to the band. And, yeah, Dimebag. Enough said. Anyway, good record. The rendition of Walk here is great and Five Minutes Alone deserves to be called out as just being maybe the standout on the record. It’s not an album that’s going to change your mind about this kind of music, but if you need your mind changed, **** you. Man, I always get a little belligerent after a Pantera record, right? Doesn’t replace and is not as essential as their more studio stuff, but yeah, good stuff. 3 stars.

    tl;dr – astoundingly talented metal band transfers in-studio ferocity to the stage, with blistering results. 3 stars.

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  17. Master_Lok

    Master_Lok Force Ghost star 6

    Registered:
    Dec 18, 2012
    Been listening to Bolt Thrower's War Master at work a lot over the past couple of days. IDC that Whale's drums are slightly off time, I love his playing and the many fills he did.

    Making me remember when I followed them around the U.S. for this album's tour too. :D

     
  18. Leoluca Randisi

    Leoluca Randisi Jedi Grand Master star 6

    Registered:
    Jun 24, 2014
  19. Isotope217

    Isotope217 Jedi Master star 2

    Registered:
    Nov 24, 2002
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    Had a recent project that I was trying to grind out and put this one on because of its relentlessness -- a quality I definitely appreciate. 'Night Rhythms' is the sprawling, epic centerpiece.


     
  20. DebonaireNerd

    DebonaireNerd Jedi Grand Master star 5

    Registered:
    Nov 9, 2012
  21. DebonaireNerd

    DebonaireNerd Jedi Grand Master star 5

    Registered:
    Nov 9, 2012
    Mark Kozelek & Desertshore:

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  22. Jedi Daniel

    Jedi Daniel Chosen One star 5

    Registered:
    Apr 7, 2000
    Destruction Derby 2 - OST by Jug
     
  23. Leoluca Randisi

    Leoluca Randisi Jedi Grand Master star 6

    Registered:
    Jun 24, 2014
  24. redlightning

    redlightning Jedi Knight star 4

    Registered:
    Feb 1, 2014


    Newsies Broadway Soundtrack. Now I want to see the show.
     
  25. Rogue1-and-a-half

    Rogue1-and-a-half Manager Emeritus who is writing his masterpiece star 9 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Nov 2, 2000
    Live at Leeds (2010) - The Who

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    So, let me just give a brief rundown of what exactly is in this 40th Anniversary Super Deluxe re-release of the Who’s landmark live album. 1 Poster: black & white, iconic image of Townshend windmilling his Rickenbacker; 1 hardcover book: a few dozen pages of essays, recording information and facsimiles of historical documents related to the Who; 1 vinyl single: Summertime Blues b/w rare studio take of Heaven & Hell; 1 vinyl LP: the original release of Live at Leeds; 4 CDs: CD 1 features the entire Leeds concert, except for the Tommy material; CD 2 features the live, almost complete run-through of Tommy from the Leeds concert; CD 3 features all the non-Tommy material from the following night’s Hull concert (set list is exactly the same as the Leeds concert, with the exception of Magic Bus, an encore from Leeds that wasn’t performed at Hull); CD 4 features the almost complete run-through of Tommy from Hull.

    Now, let me just say. The sound quality. The ******* sound quality. The sound on the CDs here is just mind-blowingly good. I mean, you crank this one up and close your eyes and you really do feel like you’re there. For a group with not a single wasted bit of sound, this kind of quality is really necessary. You can’t afford to lose a single throb of Entwhistle’s bass or a single thump of Moon’s drums or a single buzz of Townshend’s guitar or a single rasp of Daltrey’s voice and the sound here captures all of that to absolute perfection.

    On to the music itself. I’m a fan of the Who, no question, and the non-Tommy stuff is a fantastic mix of their stuff, from power pop-rock like Substitute and I’m a Boy to the longer form jam band stuff like the sixteen minute version of My Generation to the old-school covers, like a rampaging take on Mose Allison’s Young Man Blues, a thunderous breakdown of Eddie Cochran’s Summertime Blues and a grim, ferocious version of Johnny Kidd’s Shakin’ All Over, a rendition, by the by, that really equals Zep’s Whole Lotta Lovin’ for just pure insane, hard-charging lust. The set lists at both Hull & Leeds are the same, but who cares; I listened to all four CDs here numerous times and I never got tired of hearing the songs, so the fact that the final two CDs basically repeat the first two is no kind of problem at all.

    Now, I’m not a big fan of Tommy or anything. I think Quadrophenia is the rock opera success for the Who. Maybe for all time. I’m not a big fan of rock operas in general. But I definitely recommend the run throughs here over listening to the original album. The performances here are just rawer and more passionate and more intense. The excision of a couple of songs, like Cousin Kevin, for instance, don’t hurt. When Tommy actually works (Eyesight to the Blind, Pinball Wizard, etc.) it just cooks here; and when it doesn’t totally work, these recordings carry you through via the energy of the live setting.

    Anyway, I’m going on and on, but I guess it all boils down to four guys, all among the very top tier of their respective talents, on stage, making a transcendent ruckus. It’s technically superb, masterfully performed, brilliantly engaging and energizing. Transcendent ruckus. I like that. Highly recommended. 4 stars.

    tl;dr – two insanely long concerts by insanely talented band at its peak; brilliant, breath-taking, intense; the Platonic ideal of live rock. 4 stars.

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