I tried to get into them once and it didn't work, but then I didn't spend much time on it.

All right, you can stay.

ambient sounds? How dare they!

Heh, brilliant. You mention Live-Throwing Copper , you've obviously heard the grunge albums that came out before it from chains/nirvana/PJ/soundgarden right ?

I haven't heard every grunge album, but I'm familiar with (and like) those artists. I would certainly need to consider albums like Stone Temple Pilots - Purple, Alice in Chains' self-titled, Nirvana - Nevermind when making the list, but I doubt any of those would get above Throwing Copper. Actually, despite it being labelled post-grunge, I don't really associate it (or Live in general) with grunge.

Radiohead - The Bends

"Street Spirit" is very good, and I like "High and Dry", "Fake Plastic Trees", and "My Iron Lung". So I agree with the choices of singles. It's a pretty good album.

7/10

Electric Light Orchestra - "A New World Record"

9/10

Vixen - Vixen

7/10

skin was actually my favorite song on the album for a while. don't know why, just was. still top 3 on the album for me

Nice review. I haven't finished this one yet, but Only the Lonely is one of my favorite albums and much more consistent, IMO. Just make sure you listen to it without the two bonus tracks.


Wow. My new #1 song of 2012. Cannot relate to anyone who doesn't enjoy this. I like how one review said they have no business covering The Gun Club, because this easily beats every Gun Club track I've heard. Every Husker Du track, too.

Lamb-Lamb: 9/10

i really need to get some more Lamb albums.

More BNM's:

Actress- R.I.P: Great

Beach House- Bloom: It's a pretty good album, but essentially more of the same

El-P- Cancer 4 Cure: Next to the product reproduced with the Killer Mike collab, this seems less interesting

Mount Eerie- Clear Moon: Another great work from Elverum, a tad better than Ocean Roar (also great)

Fiona Apple- The Idler Wheel and some shit: Her best album. But she's always been a bit too angsty for my long run palette.

Ty Segall Band- Slaughterhouse: An incredibly alive album that seems like it will play out differently every time you listen to it.

Dirty Projectors- Swing lo Magellan: One of those albums where we'll look back in the far future after they've made a dozen records and prefer this to their "big" albums.

Frank Ocean- Channel Orange: Fantastic album but it and Frank Ocean almost feel too self-assured of their greatness from the start

Passion Pit- Gossamer: Before I even heard this album, it felt like I knew every song on it already

Swans- The Seer: World-stopping masterpiece.

Grizzly Bear- Shields: After a recent re-listen I can't help but feel underwhelmed. But that could be that I just don't care for Grizzly Bear atm.

Since I Left You - The Avalanches

I've listened to this album for about four times, yet it still eludes me. It's certainly a great collection, but I feel like I'm missing something. The problem is: I don't have the slightest idea what that something is. Maybe I'm just never in the mood for it. The title track is a favorite, though.

I don't see what there is to miss, to me the spectacle of the album is the excursion that it takes the listener on. It's a fantastic and surreal journey through various layered soundscapes and (to me) is the ultimate "escapism" listening experience. I just find it mind-blowing every time. You can chose to stop reading here, as that's the gist of it, but i'd like to take this opportunity to express some thoughts I have on the album, since to me it's a lot more than just another album- to me it's a labyrinth.

The thing that makes Since I Left You stand out is it's lasting appeal. Each track is so meticulously layered and arranged that there are several new things to enjoy and appreciate with each and every listen, it's like a lasagna of sound. I could seriously listen to a song like Etoh 10 times in a row and enjoy a different aspect about it with every listen. Not only that, but the emotion of some tracks (like Since I Left You) are so vague and obscure that you could feel something different with each listen. Is it uplifting or macabre? The album lets you decide, and i've had several instances where i've found the album to be either haunting or beautiful, or even both simultaneously.

The Avalanches leave it up to the listener for interpretation. They are merely the captain of the ship, and its up to the passenger to decide how they enjoy their journey. Whetheer you are a casual listener or somebody looking for a immerse experience, listeners may find the album's aesthetic soundscapes eerie and ominous while others will find it jovial and beautiful. Others may be confounded all together. It's that which makes me genuinely enjoy this album time and time again, because it gives me a unique listening experience like no other.

I've never really found much in that album to be described as haunting tbh.