UKFF Album of the Decade

[Frankie Crisp]

10 hours ago, Harry Wiseau said:

I've heard of two of these so far, are you sure you're not making them up? Did more than one person vote for any of them? Am I really this old and out of touch? 

 

 

Yes, yes I think I am.. Carry on Frankie.

Welcome to my world when the entries were coming in. If you take away my votes, I think I've only heard of about 30% of the artists. There have been albums with multiple votes so we get more outright places towards the end, but the ones I'll posting over the next few days are all ties. Given me a good list of ones to discover, at least! Next one's up in a min.

[Frankie Crisp]

JOINT NUMBER 7

The War On Drugs - Lost In The Dream (2014)

The critics:

"If the mesmerizing motorik hum of the War on Drugs' earlier records gave leader Adam Granduciel an outlet to escape his problems, Lost in the Dream is where he pulls a U to survey the emotional wreckage. The result is the band's most lustrous, intricately detailed, and beautifully rendered record to date.

This tension is inescapable. Whether it’s the hair-raising, Autobahn-blazing charge of “An Ocean In Between the Waves” or the Positively South Street sway of “Eyes of the Wind”, Granduciel’s litany of worries are laid bare here, free of any textural interference or obfuscation. And the comparatively direct lyrics mirror the new approach to incorporating some of Granduciel’s more unfashionable influences... ifLost in the Dream is unapologetic in its dad-rock reverence, it’s dad-rock for people who are too fucked up and broken to even think of having kids.

Or in the midst of the album’s epic break-up-ballad finale, “In Reverse”,­ you realize that all of the angst and ache that went into the song, and the album’s creation as a whole, is just building to the moment of release provided by the big, shoulder rub of an acoustic-guitar riff that appears out of nowhere at the 5:13 mark. They’re the sort of perfect little touches that effectively translate Granduciel’s private hurt into communal catharsis—and reify Lost in the Dream as an immaculately assembled portrait of a man falling apart"

The forum:

"I was put on to these by a mate who cited Dylan and Springsteen as some inspirations, as well as a nod to more mellow, Air-like songs. This has got everything I wanted in an album without realising what that was. There are plenty of 80s-inspired melodies, but the good 80s, not the shitarse pop 80s. The torture of the lad's past is injected into every verse but the eclectic instrumentals also stand out. It's heartbreaking, relatable and a whirlwind of a record. Oh and I saw them live with @Keith Houchen so they have an extra bit of sentimental worth to me"

Has old man Frankie heard of them?

I have! This was one of mine.

Edited February 7, 2020 by Frankie Crisp

[Frankie Crisp]

JOINT NUMBER 7

Royal Blood - Royal Blood (2014)

The critics:

"It didn’t take Royal Blood long to reach the top. When they emerged in 2013 they were an amped-up, old-school rock phenomenon – and duly captured the global imagination with 2014’s debut album. In its first week, that self-titled record sold 66,000 copies. There was talk of them spearheading a new wave of bombastic British rock, but the fact that the meteoric ascent of the Brighton duo – singer/guitarist Mike Kerr and drummer Ben Th*tcher – didn’t open the floodgates to followers only proves how unique their lean, muscular blues really is. But where on earth do you go from there?

Progression is subtle but significant. At the more familiar end, ‘Lights Out’ recreates ‘Out Of The Black’’s two-piece frenzy like a stampede at Jurassic Park but with more gusto. At the furthest extremes, they base ‘Hole In Your Heart’ around a dark retro-funk organ that Jack White might have hand-restored. A determination to rock up non-rock genres creates moments like ‘Don’t Tell’ and the hip-hop-influenced ‘Sleep’. Best of all is the heavy machinery rock ’n’ roll of ‘I Only Lie When I Love You’, which sounds like Josh Homme has kidnapped the duo at his desert studio and forced them play for their lives."

The forum:

"This got a good few months of playing in the car. I couldn’t tell you the names of most of the songs but they’d all get an “ooh! This one!” if I heard them now"

Has old man Frankie heard of them?

No, and it'll stay that way with that fucking surname.

Edited February 7, 2020 by Frankie Crisp

[Frankie Crisp]

(THE LAST) JOINT NUMBER 7

Plan B - The Defamation of Strickland Banks (2010)

The critics:

"Let’s sort this one out up front. Ben Drew, AKA Plan B, has transformed himself from a hoodied, ASBO rapper to a sweet-voiced soul boy. That’s all.

Yep, it’s a concept album; the tracks form the chronology of a story about a soul singer (Strickland Banks, no less) who is accused of a crime, sent to prison and, well, we won’t spoil the outcome. The sonic transformation works, most notably on the spinning arpeggios of ‘The Recluse’ (on which a desperate Banks/Plan B refuses to leave his cell), or the swaggering Motown of ‘Prayin’ (which sets Banks begging his Lord for mercy). However, Plan B’s jackhammer rapping has not been completely jettisoned.

Drew intends to turn ‘Strickland Banks’ into a film, giving the album the feel of being an ‘OST’ to an, as yet, unmade musical - with Drew vastly overstating the simple plot. But, even if there are occasional flirtations with bland daytime soul sludge, Mr. Strickland Banks is a welcome addition to Ben Drew’s beguiling set of alter-egos"

The forum:

"Only just making it in having been released in April 2010, 'Strickland Banks' is so far departed from what Plan B had done before and I really, really like it. Sure, he's not as good a singer as he thinks he is and some of the songs are shit levels of cheesy, but I really like the concept album style and this is an incredibly effective example"

Has old man Frankie heard of them?

[Frankie Crisp]

JOINT NUMBER 6

Kavinsky - Outrun (2013)

The critics:

"Kavinsky has said his music is influenced by the movie scores he heard when he was a child, and Dario Argento films must have been rented during that formative period. The film scores of Claudio Simonetti are referenced here, intentional or otherwise. “Rampage” reworks Tenebre’s main theme into a more dance-friendly piece, while “DeadCruiser” is a dead ringer for Demons’ score. If he’s not knee-deep in tales of Italian giallo, then he’s back on Mann’s dark highways for “RoadGame” and “Odd Look”, the latter featuring an assist from house DJ, SebastiAn.

During the album's climax, the beat disappears and leaves on keyboard under the narrator's final warning: "Anyone fool enough to venture out on to that treacherous road should know  one thing, there's no turning back". Once you've finished Kavinsky's OutRun, you'll want to buckle up and ride again"

The forum:

Nada.

Has old man Frankie heard of them?

[PunkStep]

From the electronic music thread:

On 1/22/2020 at 10:37 PM, PunkStep said:

Kavinsky- Outrun. What a fucking album. Nightcall (which features the awesome vocals of CSS' Lovefoxxx) thrust Kavinsky to the forefront of the scene after being used for the brilliant intro to the movie Drive, but the rest of the album is just as good. Stand out tracks: Nightcall, Suburbia, Blizzard.

 

[Frankie Crisp]

1 hour ago, Frankie Crisp said:

Has old man Frankie heard of them?

 

 

[Frankie Crisp]

Been on holiday. I know absolutely nobody's arsed, but I'll carry this on.

JOINT NUMBER 6

Foo Fighters - Wasting Light (2011)

The critics:

"After a two-year hiatus, Foo Fighters return as a five-piece to tout a ruckus of a new record, Wasting Light. So far 2011 has been the year rock makes a comeback, and it’s been nice to have it back. For as much anticipation as Wasting Light has been given, thanks to the huge promotional push, the reality is exactly what is to be expected from a Foo album: solid, no-frills, modern rock. Sounds refreshing, doesn’t it?"

When it comes to the sound of Wasting Light, even with the return of Pat Smear, not too much has changed. Foo Fighters are still the same band making the same kind of rock. What they have done, however, is taken the heaviest and hookiest material from the past decade and condensed it into one album. Wasting Light has cornered the kind of ideas that make up the best of the band’s catalog in an earnest attempt to go as big as possible, while staying relatively grounded.

On the whole, Wasting Light stays true to its word, sticking heavily to the melodic rockers that Foo Fighters can’t get enough of. “These Days” and the Bob Mould-featuring “Dear Rosemary” remind listeners that the Foos still enjoy radio play and top-40 status with big melodic riffs. “Back and Forth” is as catchy as a Foo track gets with a throwback to Nirvana on the pre-chorus segment before the sing-along chorus kicks in. This formula, to be rough but safe, has been a mantra for Foo Fighters since There Is Nothing Left to Lose. This has resulted in some of the redundancy that occurs in their music. The redundancies on Wasting Light do not equate to filler by any means, though, as proven by “Walk” and “Miss the Misery”, the latter building up for Grohl’s screaming finale as he belts, “I never want to die.”

The truth is that consistency is a way of life for Foo, giving us a kind of modern rock that’s tangible, agreeable, and, most importantly, genuine to the band. On this, their seventh LP, the band has musically plateaued in their sound, only they keep climbing to bigger and better places, simply because they continue to hone in on what has made it work over the years. To date, the Foo Fighters have never tried to reinvent the wheel, per se; they just want to keep it rolling. And that’s just what Wasting Light does. For that purpose, Foo Fighters give us a solid record from open to close. The drought is over. Rock is back."

The forum:

"This album was 2011 for me. I’d put forward the case for it being far and away the best album they’ve ever done. Cracking."

Has old man Frankie heard of them?

Sure! The lads off that Kerrang! channel when I had no job years ago. I know them.

[gmoney]

Jesus.

[Frankie Crisp]

6 minutes ago, gmoney said:

Jesus.

Rock is back!

[Daaaaaad!]

23 minutes ago, Frankie Crisp said:

I know absolutely nobody's arsed, but I'll carry this on

I'm arsed, Frankie. Pinkie swear.

[Frankie Crisp]

JOINT NUMBER 6. THIS IS LONGER THAN DION DUBLIN.

Carly Rae Jepsen - Emotion (2015)

The critics:

"Emotion is as solid and spotless a pop album as you're likely to hear this year, the result of several years working alongside a storied list of contributors. More than 200 tracks were workshopped in sessions with some of the pop world's most prestigious hired hands, including hitmakers Max Martin and Jack Antonoff, neither of whom made the final cut. In the end, just 12 made the album, with six more filling out the deluxe edition.

This may seem like a surface-level concern, but it's an important one, because E•MO•TION is all surface. It's unfair to deeply scrutinize lyrics on a pop record—the goal is to write smart, but skew broad—but E•MO•TION fails to tell us who Jepsen is or wants to be. The economy of her writing is impressive, especially on songs like the shadowy "Warm Blood" or the booming closer "When I Needed You". "LA Hallucinations", her collaboration with members from little-known indie rock bands Zolas and Data Romance, stitches a bubblegum vocal to a no-frills electronic production. (It is also the rare pop song to include the word "BuzzFeed.") But the album mostly feels like the conclusion of a team determined to create an unassailable pop product.

That's why it falls short of its ultimate goal of setting the world on fire; for all its ironclad hooks and studio precision, Jepsen's third album, like her second, lacks the personality of the most memorable pop records. There's an unshakeable vagueness to her—her last album was simply called Kiss, and this one bears the generic title E•MO•TION, with inexplicable punctuation. It may be flooded with winning moments—the bridge on "Gimmie Love"! the build to the last chorus on "All That"!—but E•MO•TION as a whole sounds like a slab of blank space. If only Jepsen had written her name.

The forum:

"Starting off with 'Run Away with Me', moving into 'Emotion', 'I Really Like You' and 'Gimmie Love', Emotion is from start to finish pop bangers which everyone should listen to. Warm Blood is up there as one of my favourite latter songs on an album, as well"

Has old man Frankie heard of them?

Didn't he play full-back for Madrid in the 80s?

 

Edited February 21, 2020 by Frankie Crisp

[PunkStep]

I Really Like You is an absolute fucking banger. One of the best pop songs of the past 20 years. I can't believe I haven't listed to that album- must give it a go.

[SuperBacon]

Who the fuck said that was the best Foo Fighters album? I need to know.

[Frankie Crisp]

Use the report button. I’m not a grass.