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Perfect Albums


Chest Rockwell

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On 2/1/2019 at 6:57 PM, ColinBollocks said:

 

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 the other is a band at their critical and commercial peak. Pretty mad an album so dour and morose became one of the best selling albums of the 90s. If I was picking a top 5 albums ever one of them is definitely making it on the list.

This. It’s my favourite album of all time and in my opinion there’s not a bad song on it. I think the reason a few of the songs seem like filler is because every other song is a massive hit. One album producing Drive, Everybody Hurts, Man on The Moon, Nightswimming, Sidewinder, Find The River. It’s like a Best Of.

My favourite track on there is a switch up between Monty Got a Raw Deal and New Orleans Instrumental.

Another album I’d consider perfect is Ten by Pearl Jam, which is preserved more by the fact it’s still the best album they’ve done. Peaked at the first album and I’ve not liked much by them since.

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2 hours ago, FelatioLips said:

I think the reason a few of the songs seem like filler is because every other song is a massive hit. One album producing Drive, Everybody Hurts, Man on The Moon, Nightswimming, Sidewinder, Find The River. It’s like a Best Of.

There are a bunch of albums like this and I would argue that none of them are perfect albums. Perfect albums need songs that are a bit more challenging but ultimately more rewarding. Those kinds of songs could never be a single but without them an album doesn't have the longevity or depth required to really elevate it to that status.

Edited by Chest Rockwell
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9 hours ago, Chest Rockwell said:

There are a bunch of albums like this and I would argue that none of them are perfect albums. Perfect albums need songs that are a bit more challenging but ultimately more rewarding. Those kinds of songs could never be a single but without them an album doesn't have the longevity or depth required to really elevate it to that status.

I'd argue that "songs that are... challenging" are generally written by the drummer and have no business on the album. Perfect albums need to flow well, create and sustain a mood, maintain some sort of internal consistency, or, in the best case, combine all of it into telling a story. 

Music taste is really a matter of opinion though, so I guess there are people whose perfect album is a fucking mess to my ears.

Edited by King Coconut
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On 2/2/2019 at 12:35 PM, gmoney said:

There's fat on Automatic. If I had to pick an REM album it would be Murmur or Reckoning, but I think they both peter out a bit before the end. Monster is a hilarious suggestion. 

I wasn't suggesting it. I was just saying I personally like it. 

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An “almost” for me is ‘So’ by Peter Gabriel which is just an outstanding album from start to finish with the exception of We Do What We’re Told and This is The Picture. A weak end to an incredibly strong album. Mercy Street is as near a perfect song as you can get.

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14 hours ago, stevieg1980 said:

I was thinking this one myself but I just cannot abide Battle. 

Battle is a great little song and perfectly placed, for me. The right way to switch from the nonsensically lovely B.L.U.R.E.M.I into Mellow Song. But that aside, the whole album is the epitome of what this thread is for. It’s probably the album I’ve listened to the most outside of anything pre-1990.

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On 2/1/2019 at 10:10 AM, Scott Malbranque said:

This - to me - is the most perfect album ever made.
It has everything, and usually in the one song, too.

I got this album for my 13th birthday in 1992 and almost thirty years later, I still listen to it on a weekly basis. It's gorgeous, it's bonkers, it's musical adhd, juvenile yet so musically mature, and it also taught me that it's okay to speak openly about having pedals and plopping.
So yeah, blame Bungle for me as a person.

 

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See, now I would pick California as their most perfect album. Not a bad song on there and it's a total masterpiece. The album has just reached its 20th anniversary too. Makes me feel old.

Wu-Tang Clans Enter the 36 Chambers is my perfect rap album and still sounds amazing now almost 30 years on.  I hated Wu Tang Forever and I think part of the reason is because 36 Chambers was so perfect.

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On 2/1/2019 at 1:55 PM, BomberPat said:

Some great shouts so far, especially Sparks!

As an offshoot to the Wu-Tang discussion, I'd nominate Liquid Swords by GZA - one of the greatest hip-hop albums of all time, the best Wu solo work, and crucially for me in a discussion on perfect albums feels like it needs to be listened to as an album. It loses something if listened to on shuffle, or if you just listen to any of the tracks out of context. It's perfectly curated.

I'm seeing Liquid Swords performed in its entirety in April, I can't bloody wait! A great shout

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Warren Zevon, Self-Titled (1976). 

If you only know Zevon for hit novelty song Werewolves of London, I would implore you to give this a shot. 

It's not his official debut (he released a bit of a dodgy folk album some years prior), but it's his first proper effort. Excellent songwriting, great pace, wonderful musicianship since everyone from The Eagles, Fleetwood Mac, The Everly Brothers and Jackson Browne played on it....

It really is a great album. One of the best about L.A.

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