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Zersch's Top 20 Albums; (or How I Learned to Love the '90s)
Topic Started: Thursday 8-05-2008, 07:55 (2,541 Views)
Cole
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I'm Coming Home
Feel free to predict whatever you want. I'm not going to directly respond to any of the comments as to try to avoid giving anything away. You've picked at least one correctly, though. ;D
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Ectopants
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Handsome Devil
saweeeeet

i'm having trouble organizing my top ten in an order that pleases me.
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Ectopants
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Handsome Devil
My next prediction is a long shot but given that one of your usernames is snowblindsleep, I'm thinking there's going to be some Sabbath in this list, and given that you've expressed a liking for both Snowblind AND Supernaut, I'm guessing Vol. 4 will make an appearance.
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Cole
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#17
Soundgarden
Superunknown (1994)
"I know I'm headed for the bottom, but I'm riding you all the way."

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Professional Reviews:
Q - 5 out of 5 stars.
Rolling Stone - 4 out of 5 stars.
All Music Guide - 4 1/2 out of 5 stars.
Entertainment Weekly - A

Top 3 songs on this album
1. Mailman
2. Black Hole Sun
3. Superunknown


Chris Cornell shined his brightest on this deliciously grungy diamond from the early 90's, and much like the aforementioned Stone Temple Pilot's album, Core, Superunknown houses quite a few staples of Soundgarden's setlist. In addition to the three tracks I highlighted above after listening to this album you can profess that you have meet the Spoonman, Fell on Black Days, and experienced the Day I Tried to Live. The overlying theme of the record seems to be suicide, depression, and drug use... the old stand-bys. But these fellas had their act perfected to a T.

This dark, mysterious album was almost foreboding in a way. Rightfully so, Superunkown was released a mere month before Curt Cobain was found unconcious after trying to paint his apartment with his brains. It speaks volumes that Soundgarden was able to hang in there and thrive even amongst the fanatically adored Nirvana. I'll also always have a soft spot for the title track as being one of the first songs I ever beat the shit out of a police officer to in-game (Road Rash for the Playstation 1.)



Two albums that just missed getting on the list:

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1. The Melvins - Stoner Witch (1994) Another band I've only recently began looking into, The Melvins are an...interesting (for lack of a better word) mix of metal, grunge, whathaveyou and I can safely say if I had grown up on this album it would be commanding one of the top spots. As it is, I'm still only getting acquainted with the little fella.

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2. The Deftones - Around the Fur (1999) This record reminds me of a hot, sweaty, confusing summer. Probably because this sat as one of my ex-friend's favorite albums of all time. While I no longer talk to that prick, I have to say his take on this Deftone's album was on the money. Chino Moreno is another vocalist that is easily in my top five vocalists of all time, his pathetic whimpers billowing out into lungbusting shouts at the drop of a hat.
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Ectopants
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Handsome Devil
I have to say I didn't expect that one, but good choice.
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Steve Jobs
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Ceo, Founder, Deity of Apple, Inc
Yay Superunknown!!
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Cole
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#16
Tool
Undertow (1993)
"I will work to elevate you. Just enough to bring you down."

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Professional Reviews:
Q - 2 out of 5 stars.
All Music Guide - 4 out of 5 stars.
Entertainment Weekly - (A-)

Top 3 songs on this album
1. Crawl Away
2. Prison Sex
3. Sober


I'm going to go ahead and show one of my cards for later on in the list; I consciously put Undertow this low to keep it slightly evenly seperated from Aenima which is a write-up for another time. This will be my last update for this little burst; five spots* revealed already so this probably will not take as long as I previously invisioned. What is there to say about Tool? There's a lot, and not much at the exact same time. I could rave over whatever odd-time signatures they use in their music like most other Tool fans do to try to pull of some air of supremacy, but I'm just going to put it to you straight: These guys fucking rock, and really know how to wield their instruments. Danny Carey is a mind-bending modern drummer and Maynard sits at the number one spot on the "favorite vocalist" list I've made a few references to. I don't know what it is about the man's voice, but I find it comforting, hypnotic, and frightening at times. Maynard weaves lyrics that appear to be several layers deep while maintaining a somewhat ambiguous stance on everything leading one to believe he could just be fucking with everyone with each album they put out.

I have to say I don't mind it one bit. I still have the first copy that I bought of this CD, and it's probably the oldest CD that I still own, barring any MC Hammer CD that might possibly be floating around in storage. After fifteen years I've still not tired of a single song off of this recording, each one chugging along like the perfect soundtrack to trek through a swamp to. If you're a fan of music then you've heard of Tool, and you already have your mind made up on how you feel about them. But I'm here begging that if you haven't actually listened to this album or Aenima, and are basing any hatred you have for the band on the legions of ... tools that make up the majority of their community, then please rectify the situation and give this A+ (fuck you Entertainment Weekly) album a fair listening to.



Two albums that get special merits like the retard class:

In honor of two of the records that really started me off in certain musical directions, I'm going to pay homage to two soundtracks this time. They would never make my list because they are compilations, but in their own right they are perfect soundtracks for imperfect movies (though I would argue in Demon Knight's favor.)

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1. Demon Knight - Official Soundtrack (1998) This might be the one right here; the pinpoint of my love for metal. As a huge fan of the movie when I was 10 or so, I stormed out to buy the soundtrack to recreate the eerie sense of the dread the movie gave me in theaters. My ears were promptly bombarded by such acts as Pantera, Ministy, Megadeth, and Machine Head to name a few. We all have to start somewhere, right? Well here was my jumping off point.

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2. Spawn - Official Soundtrack (1997) Taking well known rock acts of the day and pairing them with equally well known DJs. Sounds good in practice, right? Well it was. I've still got the booklet to this soundtrack, but have long since lost the actual disc. With star studded collaborations including Filter/The Crystal Method, Metallica/Orbital, Butthole Surfers/Moby, and Slayer/Atari Teenage Riot to name a few, this soundtrack offered up a little bit of everything.
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RikusSexSlave
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Fuckin Hadoken
Considering my taste basically encompasses faggy soft rock and Beatles tracks, I'm delightfully surprised to see some tracks I love on this list.
Though I enjoy the occasional hardcore. Ever heard Portuguese Gangsta Rap?
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Cole
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RikusSexSlave
May 8 2008, 11:58:17 AM
Considering my taste basically encompasses faggy soft rock and Beatles tracks, I'm delightfully surprised to see some tracks I love on this list.
Though I enjoy the occasional hardcore. Ever heard Portuguese Gangsta Rap?

No, but it sounds exceptionally Portugese and rather gangsta.
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luciferxsage
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What if you got everything you ever wanted, and it still sucked?
Well Z, you had my interest up to Elton John, then i just kinda tuned out...
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Cole
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Mmm...now that I look back on it I think I may remove him and the few other pre-90's bands that show up in the last stretch. I think I will stick with the 90-00 theme and give a nod to the classic acts in the final spot. In this case everyone is going to move down one spot instead of up one spot, because I came across a CD I had completely forgotten about at my friend's house last night.
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Cole
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#15
Rage Against the Machine
The Battle of Los Angeles (1998)
"What ya say? What ya say? What ya say? What?"

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Professional Reviews:
All Music Guide: 4 out of 5 stars.
Rolling Stone: 4 out of 5 stars.

Top 3 songs on this album
1. Voice of the Voiceless
2. Born as Ghosts
3. Sleep Now in the Fire

After much deliberation I decided to give The Battle of Los Angeles the nod over the equally as impressive Evil Empire. This recording was an absolute smash when it was released, making it hard to escape from hearing Zack roaring about rebellion anywhere you went. Television, radio, cinema, and even videogames quickly snatched up various tracks from The Battle of Los Angeles, picking at the bones like vultures. While the songs that broke through and became hits did so for good reason, the rest of the songs on this CD are just as good, if not better in a few instances.

I'll be honest, while I've always enjoyed the musical stylings of Rage Against the Machine, that's where it's always stopped. I've never paid a hair of attention to the actual political views of Zack de la Rocha even though he thrives on it. According to Wikipedia the record was heavily inspired by George Orwell's novel 1984, a book that I somehow managed to go without reading during highschool. I would also like to applaud the simple but highly memorable cover art for the album.

Two albums that just missed getting on the list:

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1. Acid Bath - When the Kite String Pops (1994) Sporting cover art by derranged serial killer John Wayne Gacy, you get a clue of what you're about to hear before you even put the album in. I had to get this album special ordered years back because it was near-impossible to find, but the sludge/doom metal with death metal vocal trappings contained within was more than worth the extra bucks. Too bad they dissolved after the death of their bassist. Vocalist Dax Riggs is another crooner with impressive range.

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2. Bush - Sixteen Stone (1994) I've touched briefly on artists with cryptic lyrics, but this is the first highlighted album to have outlandishly confusing lyrics. Gavin Rossdale seems to just string a bunch of random shit together in most of his songs (I would too if I was drunk on fucking Gwen Stefani) somehow creating quite a few good anthems in process. Glycerine, Comedown, and Machinehead are all fantastic highlights from this one.
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Cole
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#14
At the Drive-In
Relationship of Command (2000)
"Make sure that no one else is with you if you wish to see them alive again."

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Professional Reviews:
All Music Guide: 4 out of 5 stars.
Rolling Stone: 3 out of 5 stars.

Top 3 songs on this album
1. Arcarsenal
2. Pattern Against User
3. One Armed Scissor

Before Cedric Bixler-Zavala (get a new name guy) was the headfigure for the prog rock savants The Mars Volta, he leant his pipes to a fantastic five-piece known as At the Drive-In. Relationship of Command was their third and final release before the band dissolved, and of course it was the one to score them their fifteen minutes of mainstream success. The trojan horse sprawled across the cover of the album is a nice bit of foreshadowing, as beneath the subdued colors of the artwork lies a CD chocked full of emotion waiting to release itself in the form of abrasive sonic howls pouring from Cedric's throat.

I'm not well-versed in the genre of 'post-hardcore' but I can only assume that the vocal stylings are shared over a lot of the bands flying under the post-hardcore flag. At the sametime I can't imagine anyone being able to one-up Cedric's passionate wails heard from beginning to end, interspersed with melodic bridges that keep your ears from begging you to take breaks inbetween each track. The big hit dragged from this album for the masses was track three that I highlighted above, One Armed Scissor. Apparently a one-armed scissor is a mixture of red bull and vodka. I never was a fan of mixing red bull with anything. But I digress, if you have never heard these fellows, I highly suggest you give one of the songs above a listen. If it didn't break the overarching theme of the list I would have listed every single track from the CD.


Two albums that just missed getting on the list:

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1. Matchbox Twenty - Yourself or Someone Like You (1996) An enormously successful debut album from then twenty-five year old Rob Thomas, this is most definitely an Alt-rock classic. Push, 3 A.M., and Real World among others went on to find permanent homes at rock stations. Despite being entertaining from beginning to end, the fact that I haven't listened to the album as a whole in many years keeps it from placing on the main list. Also, who doesn't want to bury their fist in the guy on the album cover's face?

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2. Staind - Dysfunction (1999) Perhaps the one thing Fred Durst ever did that was beneficial to anyone anywhere was signing Staind to his record label and garnering them some attention. While their later recordings reeked heavily of Durst's bizkit stench, this album and the one that came before it represent what I believe are these guys at their peak. The songs still had a raw feeling to them, not quite as polished and machined as Break the Cycle or other future releases. Not that they're complaining with their millions of dollars. Weighing in at only nine songs, nearly half of them went on to become singles.
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luciferxsage
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What if you got everything you ever wanted, and it still sucked?
no Pretty Hate Machine or Downward Spiral? for shame...
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Phazorn
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NOTHING
This topic isn't about your intrests Lucifer :run:


Still awesome Z
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luciferxsage
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What if you got everything you ever wanted, and it still sucked?
dammit, if there's anything running around this board that's bigger than my ego, i want it drawn, quartered, and then shot!

:cecil:
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Cole
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I'm Coming Home
#13
The Smashing Pumpkins
Gish (1991)
"Tell me, tell me what you're after, I just want to get there faster."

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Professional Reviews:
All Music Guide: 4 1/2 out of 5 stars.

Top 3 songs on this album
1. Siva
2. Tristessa
3. Rhinoceros

Here we are, staring at the most vintage of vintage Smashing Pumpkins albums, the debut album from the lovable bald-headed (not circa this album, however) Corgan and his merry band of genderbending (Iha more like Oh, uh) lunatics. They were still unrefined on this pressing, though the members of the band already exhibited excellent command over their instruments, Chamberlin's iconic drumming laying the perfect foundation for each track. This album was the second Pumpkins album I was ever privy to, the first being Siamese Dreams, and it has held it's spot as one of my favorite releases from the boys (and girl.)

The heaviness present in most of the Pumpkin's later work was introduced here, distancing them from the psychadelic influence of their underground career. This album came long before heroin was introduced and subsequently nearly claimed the life of Jimmy Chamberlin, but according to Wikipedia the band nonetheless had mounting problems during the release of this superb debut. Bassist D'arcy went on record claiming that she wasn't sure how the band had managed to survive the recording process, Corgan citing a severe nervous breakdown during recording as one example of turbulence. It took an underwhelming twenty-thousand dollars to fund this release.


Two albums that just missed getting on the list:

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1. Reel Big Fish - Turn the Radio Off (1996) Far from the scope of other music I usually listen to, these ska punks wield a smorgasboard of instruments among their ranks. Producing undeniably catchy melodies and ironing out an excellent cover of Aha's Take on Me (though not present on this album), Reel Big Fish have remained one of those bands I will put on when a good mood strikes me and I just feel like smiling.

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2. Sunny Day Real Estate - Diary (1994) While I should dock these alt-rock/emo boys for helping to shoehorn the emo subgenre into the public eye, I can't stay mad at them anytime I hear the opening, ringing notes of In Circles. I also think the artwork is badass because little block people can be businessmen too.
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Cole
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I'm Coming Home
luciferxsage
May 9 2008, 8:20:24 AM
dammit, if there's anything running around this board that's bigger than my ego, i want it drawn, quartered, and then shot!

:cecil:

Hitchiker's Guide ftmfw.
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Dikitain
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Space Invader
Gish was a great album, but I always thought Mellon Collie was better. I listened to it about 10X more than this one, and it pretty much defined my high school existence.

Still hope Siamese Dream is on the list, that was a good album as well.
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luciferxsage
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What if you got everything you ever wanted, and it still sucked?
<----Vogon Poet...
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