10. Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark - Organisation
I was introduced to OMD in the film Waltz With Bashir. When Enola Gay started playing, I knew this was something really special. Since then I've been a bit disappointed, since no other songs by the band can reach the genius of that song. Organisation is the band's best album, but even there Enola Gay dominates the scene. OMD's electronic new wave is not as dark as it should be. What I mean by that is that with industrial sounds like this, the mood should be darker. This album has it's moments, but it doesn't make good enough impression to be lifted higher on the list. If only they had more hit songs, this album would be something really special. I'm still glad I got the opportunity to introduce at least one album from this band. Listen to the album on Spotify.
This is one of those albums that are so big classics, I can't possibly leave them out, even though they've never been that important to me personally. Remain In Light is Talking Heads' most ambitious and innovative album. What bothers me with it, is the lack of great melodies. This is why I'll probably never come to love this album. The sounds on the other hand are like no other. I think Brian Eno as a producer is the reason behind this. Funky regular band instruments are accompanied by various electronic space sounds. The rhythms get influences from African drumming. At best, the jamming on this album gets really intense and I can see how great that would sound live. As an album though I don't feel like there would be many situations where I would feel like listening to this at home. Listen to the album on Spotify.
In my opinion, Kate Bush made her best albums in the 70's. Her fairytale-like sounds and out-of-this-world vocals make her music sound completely unique. Never for Ever has similar sounds to her earlier albums, but the selection of songs is not as strong. The opening song Babooshka is one of her best songs though. Delius sounds a bit like Air's songs in the late 90's. All We Ever Look For is an example of baroque pop that could've influenced artists like Rufus Wainwright or Joanna Newsom. Kate Bush's art-pop has no doubt influenced a variety of female artists and I don't know if artists like Björk would exists as they are without the groundbreaking work of Kate Bush. Bush is one of the most original artists of all times. Listen to the album on Spotify.
AC/DC is not the most intelligent or innovative band in the world, or even among them, but they know how to make songs that make you nod your head along. Almost all of their songs sound pretty much the same, but the mood they can produce is like no other. Back In Black is probably their best album. From the very first church bells and crunchy guitars you know that this album is pure rock n' roll. The lyrics are awful, but since I don't usually listen to the lyrics anyway, I can just enjoy the beautiful guitar work and insane screams of Brian Johnson who had for the first time taken the place of Bon Scott, who had died previously that year at the age of 33. AC/DC does not venture to make new innovative things, but what they do, they do well. Listen to the album on Youtube.
I have known about the existence of The Jam for a long time, but I only started really listening to them while making this blog. Their music is a mixture of classic rock, mod-pop and punk. The songs have punk attitude, but The Jam knows how to make great melodies as well. I don't know yet how my relationship with this band will evolve as the time goes on, but I feel already like I should've listened to The Jam for a long time. They have strong influences from the 60's bands like The Beatles, Kinks and The Who. I just found Sound Affects as a vinyl in a record store in London and I'm proud owner of my first The Jam album. I like the strong English accent used in vocals of this album. This sets the music apart from some over produced American albums of the time and pave way to Brit-pop. Listen to the album on Spotify.
Jeopardy can only be described with a word cool! The album cover reminds me of propaganda posters during the second world war. The Sound's dark post-punk sounds modern for its time and is more melodic than Joy Division. Strong bass lines are in the centre of the music, but the guitars and synths are used beautifully to make an atmosphere of eerie beauty. I've only heard the Sound's albums a couple of times, but in my mind they're already one of the best post-punk bands of the early 80's. The lead singer, Adrian Borland, eventually killed himself at the age of 41 by jumping in front of a train in Wimbledon after a long period of depression. This was long time after the band's golden years, but it's another rock n' roll death after all and I wonder if it had to do with fading success and fall into anonymity. Listen to the album on Spotify.
Joy Division really changed rock history. They took influences from punk movement and experimental rock to form completely unique sounds influencing staggering amount of future bands. Closer is not as good as the debut album Unknown Pleasures, but it has its moments. The best songs are heard on the end half of the album. Songs like Heart and Soul and Twenty Four Hours groove beautifully and hauntingly. The Eternal expresses deep sorrow and pain. The lack of proper melodies at the beginning of the album however make me leave Closer to the fourth place this year. Closer brought Joy Division to the brink of superstardom, but unfortunately Ian Curtis couldn't handle the fame and killed himself before the band's first American tour. Listen to the album on Spotify.
When it comes to ska-punk in the turn of the 80's, this is a seminal album. Dexy's Midnight Runners' debut album is amazingly good mix of post-punk and upbeat ska rhythms. The horn section is amazing. I feel a bit disappointed that I had to leave this album to the third place this year, but the top three is crazily good. Tell Me When My Lights Turn Green is one of the best songs of this era. Kevin Rowland's bit off-key vocals are completely unique, but the work of the band itself is even more amazing. This has taken punk, that was mainly about the notion that anyone can form a band, to the next level and made skilful masterpiece out of the mood. The album cover is one of the best album covers of the time. If you're not familiar with this album I order you to listen to it right away. Listen to the album on Spotify.
This is a classic cult album. Not many people today recognise this band let alone the album, but many of those who devote their lives to music consider this one of the most influential albums of all times. A lot of artists mention this album when asked about their idols. The sounds mix post-punk, psychedelia and guitar-pop. Fortunately, re-issues of the album were released few years ago and hopefully more and more younger generations will find this brilliant album. The album combines various musical styles, but it still manages to sound coherently whole. There is true experimentation and the sounds have no doubt been groundbreaking at the time. Just listen to the sounds at the beginning of Forces at Work. Original Love is like a weird punk version of Rolling Stones' Paint it Black. Listen to the album on Spotify.
Seventeen Seconds is probably The Cure's best album. it's full of scary darkness, great horror melodies and beauty. Unlike some later The Cure albums, Seventeen Seconds has a lot of quiet bits, that enhance the drama of the album. The volume rises from quiet clear guitars to explosions. This makes the album interesting as a whole. Songs like Play for Today and A Forest get the shivers going in my spine. This is much more than almost any other 80's album can do. This is why I must lift this album to the number one place, even though I've appraised a lot of The Cure albums before. The album cover adds to the dark mystery of the band. The album cover could just as well be the cover of a horror movie. That's what The Cure is all about. It's a lot creepier and a lot darker than any heavy metal, even though heavy metal was initially supposed to be the scariest music around. Listen to the album on Spotify.
No comments:
Post a Comment