First 5 today, next 5 tomorrow, which incidentally will be:
Depeche Mode - Violator
Helmet - Betty
My Bloody Valentine - Loveless
A Silver Mt. Zion - He Has Left Us Alone But Shafts of Light Sometimes Grace the Corners of Our Rooms
The Weather Report - Heavy Weather
Now, read on:
Faith No More - King For a Day, Fool For a Lifetime
Anybody who knows me probably won't be surprised that this album has made the list. Not just because it's one of my favourite albums of all time... Mainly because there was always going to be something involving Mike Patton in here. Best vocalist ever. That's all I have to say on the matter. I chose King For a Day... mainly because of it's wide range of sounds and styles. Faith No More were already known for convention-fucking and genre-bending, but never before this had they so brilliantly combined pretty much everything. From metal (Ricochet) to spastic screams (Cuckoo For Caca) and the epic pomp of closer Just a Man, through lounge, big band jazz, ethereal electronica, almost-punk (the masterpiece that is Digging the Grave) and even elements of genres that it's very possible the band made up themselves. Pattons vocals as always were on top form, but the main thing that sets this apart from other Faith No More works is the eccentricity of (Mr Bungle guitarist) Trey Spruance's minimalist lead parts and fat, chunky distorted chordal riffs. Veering between moments of soft reflection and others of sheer, unbridled madness, King For a Day... is one of the most surreal, bizarre and borderline schizophrenic albums you will ever hear. And God bless 'em for making it.
Far - Water and Solutions
Along with Quicksand (see lower down), Far were responsible for really opening my ears beyond the standards of hardcore, punk and metal, giving me an opportunity to venture into various other areas of the genre. Put simply, Water & Solutions is a fucking masterpiece. Popping out of the Sacramento scene that spawned Deftones and Will Haven, it would have been easy to assume Far to be working along the same nu-metal/hardcore lines. Although there were elements of this on previous album Tin Cans With Strings to You, Water & Solutions is an altogether different prospect. From moody opener Bury White right through to the achingly beautiful closer Waiting For Sunday, this album hits every mark it aims for spot on. Mother Mary and Man Overboard nail your heart to the wall, while tracks such as I Like it and The System just make you want to hit the dancefloor or pit with everything you've got. Jonah Matranga's lyrics are incredible throughout, and the vocals... well, if you've ever heard Jonah's voice, you'll know what's going down here. Beautiful, rich, yet icy tones, with probably more heartfelt emotion than anything you'll hear from the modern emo crowd. It's a testament to his talent that people still follow him to this day, despite many short-lived projects and an on-off, ever-changing solo career. Maybe a bit too late to have invented emo, but certainly better than anyone else who's tried. Water & Solutions is a remarkable album by a remarkable band. And if you've never heard it... well, more fool you. Go out and buy a copy now, the re-issued versions are on Amazon for less than a fiver. You could do a lot, lot worse.
Quicksand - Slip
I know a lot of people that prefer Quicksand's other full length, Manic Compression. After years and years of trying to comprehend this, I'm still utterly baffled. Slip is an incredible piece of work. Featuring post-hardcore luminary Walter Schreifels (Gorilla Biscuits, Youth of Today, Rival Schools, etc, etc...), Quicksand were pioneers of their genre, taking the standard hardcore ideas and violating them to such extremes that you'd be hard pressed to realise what they might have been in the first place. However, this is a violation that was most welcome, revitalising a flagging scene and putting themselves into the history books as some of the Godfathers of the emo scene. Fazer could be one of the most blindingly exciting album openers ever written, setting the standard high. Despite such an opening bombast, the quality never dips, and the album soars and soars, higher and higher until closer Transparent... This album seems like the musical equivalent of Icarus' flight to the sun, only unlike the winged fool, Quicksand never burn and fall to Earth. Rather, Slip seems to join with and begin making love to the sun... Full of energy, both upbeat and downbeat at times, angry and fun, Slip is a lot to live up to for any band. No wonder emo is so shit now. They'd never beat it.
The Smashing Pumpkins - Adore
Indeed, not the album that got me into the Pumpkins, nor classically considered their best. However, this is probably the best musical example of a wolf in sheep's clothing that I've ever heard. Opening with the shrill, beautiful To Sheila, with it's pretty acoustic guitars and Disney-esque plinks-&-plonks, it's not long before it's broken into a snarling, beat-driven electro-rock monster with second track Ava Adore. As the album progresses, you start to notice these two vastly different extremes writhing around each other, mingling together to create a beautiful piece that brilliantly conveys rage, love and sadness in equal measure, often at the same time. Appels + Oranjes jumps out in the middle of the album, it's processed beats and upbeat rhythms vastly contrasting it's melancholy "What if..." lyrics. The album peaks with the building and building piano-led monolith that is For Martha, crashing to it's highest point, and fading itself beautifully into the closing tracks. The Pumpkins had been forced into a difficult position following the sacking of drummer Jimmy Chamberlain, and many had expected Adore to be a very different prospect from their previous albums. However, nobody could have predicted this... a monolithic, yet tiny sounding album, full of lush soundscapes, beats and subtle guitars. In my eyes, their best work.
Squarepusher - Go Plastic
Before hearing Squarepusher, I hadn't paid too much attention to the drum'n'bass genre. Indeed, this isn't standard drum'n'bass... some would claim it to be a completely different genre altogether. But it was Tom Jenkinson's compination of drum'n'bass beats, 2-step, jazz and cut up rhythms that really made me sit up and pay attention to anything in that spectrum. Until hearing Go Plastic, the only electronics I really liked in music were synthesized moodiness, soundscaping and various other morose things. This album, although not my favourite Squarepusher release, put me bolt upright in my chair, and was (quite bizarrely, considering it's oddness and awkward sounding nature) also a massive part in my discovery of dance music. At times danceable (My Red Hot Car) and at others pretty much just an example of extreme noise (Greenways Trajectory), Go Plastic is relentless in its invention, at times making me wonder why it isn't actually named after third track Go Spastic! A lot of people I have spoken to in the past about this album have just said it's nothing but bleeps, squalls and beats. But, not for the first time... everybody's wrong. A work of complete and total fucking art.
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