#15forFRIDAY
OUR 15 PERSONAL PERFECT ALBUMS
WRITTEN BY
JOE COMPTON &
JD ESTRADA
HUGE DISCLAIMER!!
We are doing something completely different on both our blogs with what we are about to jointly present to you and we are far from abandoning or changing our philosophies here about supporting and talking about Indie Artists and their Art but J. D. Estrada and I like so many diverse things and we like the mainstream as much as Indies. For without a lot of these on this list especially, I know I can speak for J. D. when I say we both would not be doing what we do for Indies without these essential albums we picked. So with that being said here, in no particular order whatsoever are our 15 Favorite Perfect Albums.#15forFriday (We will probably do this with other subjects every other Friday here and on For Writing Out Loud, JD's blog)
JD: After the trauma of not including the other 15 albums in my list of top 15 perfect albums of all time, I told Joe, “Bro, I’ll give my list but no order. My heart can’t take it.” So here’s my list... and of course, there’s a revision which I’ll allude to...which is my sneaky way of getting in an extra option. JOE: Just for the record (how's that for a pun ;) ) this was equally as agonizing for me and I made like 14 different lists before "settling" on these 15. I am actually glad we already posted the honorable mentions because I would have like 6 more to add to that list that I wasn't thinking of and that has now come up since, ugh! Alas though no more frets, so now here are the lists of 15 of our favorite Perfect Albums, and yes, as we agreed they are in no ranking order.
We will start with the one we both share:
Joe's thoughts: I don't know if there has ever been a tighter arrangement of singles into a cohesive theme like TEN. It is so well organized and shows the band's range in its purest and rawest form. I really feel like a lot of what I have heard from Pearl Jam could use a little bit of this grit. This album may also have the best deep tracks of any album on this list. Starting with ONCE and WHY GO, both are jams to jammiest (yes I just made up a word, get over it) extremes. OCEANS is a super surprise, it is my Seattle playlist rotation darling. I love when my shuffle finds it and puts it in front of me, always seems to be at the perfect time for it. While this album does exactly what all the albums in the Honorable mentions do, end with a long salvo of the likes of Steven Speilberg or JRR Tolkien, RELEASE is the least egregious of all those. In fact, it is a beautiful glimpse into what Eddie Vedder can do poetically. I would argue that JEREMY shows a lot of that beautiful poetry as well. For me, nothing tops BLACK though. It is my favorite Pearl Jam song by a long distance, and it is perfect in every way; heart-wrenching, poignant, and real. It really for me shades in around even the most commercial of efforts on this album and makes them more enjoyable. I love its tempo, its resolve, and its the best singing on the album. You really feel like Eddie was feeling it as he belted these notes out. Not that you don't feel that way elsewhere, but there was special care about this song in particular to me and it could be just me because I love it and love how he sings it? Ten goes to 11, literally and bombastically ironically and again showing a little teet hooked me for life with this band, and though I have apologized to myself more over the years than I would like, saying why do I keep going back to them? I always answer myself because of TEN, duh. I love the defiance, the reverence, and the sheer grit on every song here and this album as a whole. For that reason, for me, it is perfect.
JD's thoughts: If you know me, you knew this was coming. Period. For my money, it rarely gets better than Ten...even if the album has 11 tracks and that ends up being a bit confusing. What’s remarkable about this album is the sheer range of moods and emotions. Eddie and Co can be aggressive AF with Once or particularly Deep (one of my fav tracks), but they literally can rip your heart with Black and heal it with Oceans and Release. Add to that the riffsational Alive (with one of my fav solos of all time), and you have a mammoth album. For the longest time, I thought Pearl Jam had been the reason I’d been saved from being a hip-hop wannabe...but nope, it was another album.
We also share 3 bands in common but with different albums….
PEARL JAM - 10
Joe's thoughts: I don't know if there has ever been a tighter arrangement of singles into a cohesive theme like TEN. It is so well organized and shows the band's range in its purest and rawest form. I really feel like a lot of what I have heard from Pearl Jam could use a little bit of this grit. This album may also have the best deep tracks of any album on this list. Starting with ONCE and WHY GO, both are jams to jammiest (yes I just made up a word, get over it) extremes. OCEANS is a super surprise, it is my Seattle playlist rotation darling. I love when my shuffle finds it and puts it in front of me, always seems to be at the perfect time for it. While this album does exactly what all the albums in the Honorable mentions do, end with a long salvo of the likes of Steven Speilberg or JRR Tolkien, RELEASE is the least egregious of all those. In fact, it is a beautiful glimpse into what Eddie Vedder can do poetically. I would argue that JEREMY shows a lot of that beautiful poetry as well. For me, nothing tops BLACK though. It is my favorite Pearl Jam song by a long distance, and it is perfect in every way; heart-wrenching, poignant, and real. It really for me shades in around even the most commercial of efforts on this album and makes them more enjoyable. I love its tempo, its resolve, and its the best singing on the album. You really feel like Eddie was feeling it as he belted these notes out. Not that you don't feel that way elsewhere, but there was special care about this song in particular to me and it could be just me because I love it and love how he sings it? Ten goes to 11, literally and bombastically ironically and again showing a little teet hooked me for life with this band, and though I have apologized to myself more over the years than I would like, saying why do I keep going back to them? I always answer myself because of TEN, duh. I love the defiance, the reverence, and the sheer grit on every song here and this album as a whole. For that reason, for me, it is perfect.
JD's thoughts: If you know me, you knew this was coming. Period. For my money, it rarely gets better than Ten...even if the album has 11 tracks and that ends up being a bit confusing. What’s remarkable about this album is the sheer range of moods and emotions. Eddie and Co can be aggressive AF with Once or particularly Deep (one of my fav tracks), but they literally can rip your heart with Black and heal it with Oceans and Release. Add to that the riffsational Alive (with one of my fav solos of all time), and you have a mammoth album. For the longest time, I thought Pearl Jam had been the reason I’d been saved from being a hip-hop wannabe...but nope, it was another album.
We also share 3 bands in common but with different albums….
RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS
JD’s pick is…
CALIFORNICATION
JD: Here’s a band for whom deciding was a pain in the ass. Do I like Blood Sugar Sex Magick more? Yes. But in the back end, there are some tracks that could have been cut. If you take any track out of Californication, that would be a tragedy. Intense, funky, fun, intimate, heartfelt, and tight as a MoFo. This album is unskippable and if you like the Chili Peppers, you will love this album.
Joe’s pick is…
Joe’s pick is…
BY THE WAY
Joe: While I agree Californication is a great album, it in fact has my favorite RHCP song of all time on it (we’ll save that for another list soon ;) ), the “hits” on that album are a little more played for me than the ones on By The Way. Also, I am so into the really deep tracks on By The Way like Dosed, I Could Die For You, Midnight, Cabron, and Throw Away Your Television. The intense emotional songwriting on this album is where the band makes this never looking back pivot into the light we now see shine on this band.
THEN THERE'S...
THE DOORS
JD’s pick is…
THE DOORS (SELF-TITLED DEBUT)
Joe’s pick is…
Joe: While again I agree with my colleague that might be the best debut album of any band in the history of music, and the deep tracks are phenomenal. I don’t know that an acid rock band put out a tighter 10 songs, certainly for their own catalog this album just seems the most complete and the most non-commercial of theirs. I love the deep cuts here like The Changling and Hyacinth House and of the commercial hits, it’s hard to beat LA Woman, Love Her Madly, and Riders on The Storm. I also think that not only is Morrison’s range on display but I think this is easily Kreiger’s most complex effort and Manzarek’s shining bright light. The only thing that I think is a bit weaker than previous albums is the songwriting and yet it is still amazing. The thing is on that front too, where the songwriting is stronger it’s not sustained for a full album maybe, other than the debut self-titled album but the deep cuts are better here for me.
L. A. WOMAN
Joe: While again I agree with my colleague that might be the best debut album of any band in the history of music, and the deep tracks are phenomenal. I don’t know that an acid rock band put out a tighter 10 songs, certainly for their own catalog this album just seems the most complete and the most non-commercial of theirs. I love the deep cuts here like The Changling and Hyacinth House and of the commercial hits, it’s hard to beat LA Woman, Love Her Madly, and Riders on The Storm. I also think that not only is Morrison’s range on display but I think this is easily Kreiger’s most complex effort and Manzarek’s shining bright light. The only thing that I think is a bit weaker than previous albums is the songwriting and yet it is still amazing. The thing is on that front too, where the songwriting is stronger it’s not sustained for a full album maybe, other than the debut self-titled album but the deep cuts are better here for me.
THEN THERE IS...
ALICE IN CHAINS
Joe's pick is...
FACELIFT
JOE: The unique sounds of Jerry Cantrell and Layne Staley are unlike anything I have ever heard in Metal and Rock. There are some punch-you-in-the-face riffs, some nice ballad-like tonal reaching deepness, and even a bit of funk. Combine all that with the most introspective lyrical content sure to break your heart as much as it is to inspire and provoke deep thoughts and emotions and still somehow give the big middle finger to societal bullshit, and you have perfection from track 1 We Die Young to the last track Real Thing, all I have to say is "Thank you very much and can I borrow 50 bucks".Actually, I will say one more thing, Confusion may be the best ballad I have ever heard but as much as I love it, Sea of Sorrow is my favorite track on days when I feel like looking away from the mirror and cursing at the world. Confusion is the one I belt out loudly when I want the world to hear me. That's the power of AIC, they have songs you need to hear not just like to hear because their truths are fairly universal.
JD's pick is...
UNPLUGGED
JD: Alice In Chains Unplugged – how good is a live performance that even acoustic you go back to it more often than studio albums? My favorite MTV Unplugged is Alice In Chains because they are the band that truly lost themselves in capturing something truly magical while not using any bit of distortion and showing a band can be just as heavy when you just give them acoustic instruments. What I absolutely love about this show/album is that the sequencing is perfect, even the bonus track. Also, stripping everything away, it shows how good these songs really are. Highlights include Sean Kinney’s drums on No Excuses, the tone of Mike Inez’s bass, Layne’s vocals on Would?, and the harmonies between Jerry and Layne throughout the show. No lags, no sags, just magic.
Okay, so from here on out we differ and we will start with JD's next pick.
TEMPLE OF THE DOG - TEMPLE OF THE DOG
JD: Chris Cornell is probably the best songwriter ever to be born in Seattle and I’m not saying that lightly. I looked at the other bands the other singers the other lyricists and I honestly believe is the guy. Case in point, the true album that opened my soul to rock. Born from the passing of a friend, I can’t find a better example of emotional alchemy than Temple of the Dog. Hunger Strike made you want to rock in fields and with a campfire, Say Hello to Heaven is one of my favorite songs ever, and the frantic dual solo Reach Down shows that this album captured the magic. Chris didn’t give Eddie direction on how to sing co-vocals on Hunger Strike and everything just gels. Even the lesser-known tracks like Wooden Jesus and Times of Trouble show the marks of greatness, not to mention Matt Cameron’s drumming on Your Savior (some of his best work in my opinion). That this album was recorded in only 15 days shows what true magic sounds like. So press play, sit back, and enjoy.
Joe will stay in Pacific Northwest (Good Ole Bay Area) for his next pick...
RANCID - ...AND OUT COMES THE WOLVES
JD’s next pick is…
PINK FLOYD - DARK SIDE OF THE MOON
JD: Although I like several other Pink Floyd albums more than Dark Side, when it comes to perfection, it’s hard to argue that this album is meant to be played throughout the day. Musically, it is probably the most balanced Pink Floyd album, where everyone is on point and power struggles haven’t gotten the better of egos. It’s like one long track that takes you on a proper journey, which is what the best music does.
Joe’s next pick is…
MODEST MOUSE - GOOD NEWS FOR PEOPLE WHO LOVE BAD NEWS
JD’s next pick is…
TOOL – AENIMA
JD: Is this Tool’s best album? Some people would say no and you can make a case for Lateralus musically speaking, but take away the in-between transition tracks and there is not one weak track on this album. Hell, even Die Eter Von Satan is worth a listen for me as I remember a friend of mine FREAKING out because he thought it was satanic, in other words, Tool being Tool. But Aenima is relentless and even with several voice effects, it’s an album I love vocally and lyrically. It was Tool when it was a bit more concentrated and didn’t need every track to last over 10 minutes and when they were visceral, boy did they hit hard. One of my formative albums you could say...and speaking of formative.
Joe’s next pick is…
BLACK SABBATH - PARANOID
JOE: I got to say that was an awesome pick by JD. If you read my honorable mentions you know how hard it was for me to leave that album off either list. I like what JD said about there might be musically better albums, because I think I feel the same way about Black Sabbath. I think they get much better as the albums progress musically but there is just something about this album that I think has that gateway drug into Heavy Metal appeal that is second to none. The deep tracks on this album are limited because the album itself has so many hits but Electric Funeral and Hand of Doom are absolutely awesome if you can even say they are deep tracks, I am not so sure.
JD’s next pick is…
NINE-INCH NAILS - THE DOWNWARD SPIRAL
JD: I’m a 90’s child, granted, but there’s no denying that the Downward Spiral is one of the best dark albums of all time and definitely a personal favorite. People know it for the fucktastic Closer, the aggro glory that is March of the Pigs, or the confessional Hurt...but this album is so much more than that. When your instrumental tracks (are worth putting on repeat for over an hour to write (A Warm Place), you know there’s something special going on.
Joe’s next pick is…
TEARS FOR FEARS - SONGS FROM THE BIG CHAIR
Joe: Well I am an 80's child so I had to have one of those quintessential influencers on here. Even an album that has mega-hits like Shout, Everybody Wants to Rule the World, and Head Over Heels (my favorite song of theirs by the way) that everybody knows verbatim, it was impossible not to have this on the list. This is the one new wave album that has no skippables for me. Depeche Mode's Violator comes close but those hits get a little more played for me than Tears' do. Its deep tracks are so incredible like I Believe, The Working Hour (one of the best songs I have ever seen performed live), and Listen. Curt and Roland are such an amazing duo when they dig deep, maybe the best ever in rock history. I think there have been some misses later on but this album is pristine in its approach and execution. If the hits don’t tell you that, then I guess we will have SHOUT!
CAFE TACVBA - RE
JD: When it comes to Latin Rock albums, I will ALWAYS recommend Re. It is authentically Mexican and as adventurous as it gets. Twenty tracks. TWENTY. And all stellar. The band was in a creative boom and brought in 20 tracks that seemed all over the place. The response of Producer Gustavo Santaolalla? We’ll be using everything! Sonically, Re covers all the bases and creates several new ones at the same time, incorporating interesting instrumentation and daring to boldly go where no other band has gone before. It’s basically a double album you can listen to over and over and over again. I checked Rolling Stone out of curiosity, and we agree on this one, so by all means, press play and don’t you dare hit shuffle.
Joe's next pick is...
THE MIGHTY MIGHTY BOSSTONES - PIN POINTS & GIN JOINTS
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Joe: Again there will be a lot of people outside of Ska circles (and maybe even within) who point to Let's Face It as the band's best and I can't fault anybody who does, though you'd better not call THE song Impression That I Get, Knock On Wood. You are disqualified from having an opinion around me ever again if you do. Now this album, a later entry into the catalog and one that marked the return of the band after some time to recover from its brief how do you do fame, really shows the depth of the band more. So much personal shit is on here, and don't get me wrong it's not like that's not on other albums and it's not like this album doesn't have its observant absurdity fun tracks either, Graffiti Worth Reading and Na Na Na Na start the festivities but there's a level of maturity here that changed this band forever. Dicky found his songwriting voice on Let's Face It but he found his deep musical connection here. Songs like I Wrote It and You Left Right are stellar examples of this. Absolutely the one album I will listen to all the way through almost every time I need a little Bosstones in my life, which is quite often.
JD's next pick is...
RADIOHEAD - THE BENDS
Joe's next pick is also a band that many people would pick different albums as their favorite from...
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Joe: I will be blunt. Lemmy could literally sing the phone book or stereo instructions in the only way this band knows how to play and it would be the greatest album ever. They were Motorhead and they played Rock N' Roll. I know people are going to be dismayed at my lack of metal royalty on this list, Master of Puppets, Powerslave, and Screaming For Vengeance are definitely masterpieces but in all honesty, they all have a song, if not 2 or 3, I would skip on them. Okay maybe Puppets doesn't, but I have to be in the mood for Orion, not going to lie. Here is the one metal royalty band I have on this list so enjoy...and they have the only thing that matters, LEMMY!! This album fucking kicks the door down and never stops. Even the pinnacle, epic title track has this distinct flair that makes you throw your fist in the air and declare yourself a god. That is Lemmy's power. He sings songs about how to empower and relate to all of us, and this album chock-full of those examples, Deaf Forever, Nothing Up My Sleeve, Built For Speed, and Doctor Rock. This is the greatest Anthem band there ever has been or ever will be and this album has my favorites on it so it's makes my list pretty fucking easily.
Ok let's switch it up and give you another one of my favorites first...
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Joe: Most people who love this band would probably say Suffer is the better album but if you say The New America do me a favor and don't talk to me for a little bit, just kidding, kind of, but for me, No Control is the most succinct of all the albums on my list. It shows how the band grew from Suffer and how that can be a good thing, not a poser or sold-out thing. Bands evolve, get over it, but I will even agree Bad Religion evolved a little too much (ahem, The New America) and Sorrow just needs to go away. Greg Graffin is my favorite songwriter of all time, his lyrics speak to me, even when the music doesn't but there is not a song here that I don't think shares the complexities and soul of a thinking person that wouldn't resonate if you really listened to it. From Big Bang to Sanity to Automatic Man, to the even commercial I Want To Conquer The World, the pacing is perfect, arrangement on the album buzzes like they could not be anywhere else and work. It's an amazing piece of art.
JD: Is Siamese Dream better than Mellon Collie? No. Is it more consistent? Ridiculously so. There are no weak tracks for me in Siamese dream and though it has plenty of polish, and some songs like Rocket or Disarm feel a bit TOO polished, that doesn’t change the fact that they’re great songs and what I absolutely love about this album is that my favorite tracks are the deep cuts. Mayonnaise, Silverfuck, Soma, and Hummer have gotten a LOT of play from me and from the Pumpkins, this is the only album that I find no holes in. Will I always be switching between Mellon Collie and Siamese over which is my favorite? Sure. But this is still the more consistent album top to bottom.
So, what else does Mr. Estrada have, here you go, here's his next one and I have to say its one that appeared a couple times on my initial lists...
JD's next pick is....
JD: This. Album. Was. Everywhere. And for good reason. You Oughta Know is still one of the best songs to be produced by the 90s, which is ridiculous considering all the amazing music that came from all genres in that decade. The Captain (my wife) mentioned No Doubt’s Tragic Kingdom and that’s also a stellar album I thought was worth mentioning, but when it comes to an album with several tracks that keep drawing me back in, Jagged sits supreme. From singles to deeper cuts, this album delivers emotionally, musically, vocally, and lyrically in ways few albums do, and for that alone, it deserves a place on the list.
So, it's not going to take a rocket scientist to figure out what my next album is thanks to a perfect segue by my esteemed colleague there...
MOTORHEAD - ORGASMATRON
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Joe: I will be blunt. Lemmy could literally sing the phone book or stereo instructions in the only way this band knows how to play and it would be the greatest album ever. They were Motorhead and they played Rock N' Roll. I know people are going to be dismayed at my lack of metal royalty on this list, Master of Puppets, Powerslave, and Screaming For Vengeance are definitely masterpieces but in all honesty, they all have a song, if not 2 or 3, I would skip on them. Okay maybe Puppets doesn't, but I have to be in the mood for Orion, not going to lie. Here is the one metal royalty band I have on this list so enjoy...and they have the only thing that matters, LEMMY!! This album fucking kicks the door down and never stops. Even the pinnacle, epic title track has this distinct flair that makes you throw your fist in the air and declare yourself a god. That is Lemmy's power. He sings songs about how to empower and relate to all of us, and this album chock-full of those examples, Deaf Forever, Nothing Up My Sleeve, Built For Speed, and Doctor Rock. This is the greatest Anthem band there ever has been or ever will be and this album has my favorites on it so it's makes my list pretty fucking easily.
Ok let's switch it up and give you another one of my favorites first...
BAD RELIGION - NO CONTROL
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JD's next pick is..
SMASHING PUMPKINS - SIAMESE DREAM
So, what else does Mr. Estrada have, here you go, here's his next one and I have to say its one that appeared a couple times on my initial lists...
JD's next pick is....
ALANIS MORRISETTE - JAGGED LITTLE PILL
JD: This. Album. Was. Everywhere. And for good reason. You Oughta Know is still one of the best songs to be produced by the 90s, which is ridiculous considering all the amazing music that came from all genres in that decade. The Captain (my wife) mentioned No Doubt’s Tragic Kingdom and that’s also a stellar album I thought was worth mentioning, but when it comes to an album with several tracks that keep drawing me back in, Jagged sits supreme. From singles to deeper cuts, this album delivers emotionally, musically, vocally, and lyrically in ways few albums do, and for that alone, it deserves a place on the list.
So, it's not going to take a rocket scientist to figure out what my next album is thanks to a perfect segue by my esteemed colleague there...
NO DOUBT - TRAGIC KINGDOM
JD'S next pick is...
SOUNDGARDEN - SUPERUNKNOWN
JD: Might I have a soft spot for Down on the Upside? That would be an understatement, but Superunknown is a masterpiece of 90’s rock. Intense, unapologetic, melodic, varied, and very very VERY fucking loud, Superuknown has four unique musicians firing on all cylinders. Do I think the band is more nuanced in Down on the Upside? Yes. Do I think Badmotorfinger is more adventurous? Yes. But even the experimental track “Half” rocks and I knew to listen to that one on repeat. Pound for pound, a few albums hit harder than this one.
Joe's Next Pick is...
DANZIG - DANZIG
JOE: I don't know what it is about Lead Singers when they leave a great band and go solo but for me, it nearly always works, Ozzy, Henry Rollins, and Dio. Now of course there are exceptions, ahem Joey Belladonna, but no one has done it right away better than Glenn Danzig. Yeah, all the first albums from those I mentioned are bangers, no doubt, but usually, it's the 2nd or 3rd album where they really find it. I mean Danzig II is fucking amazing too but this one, it blends Hard Rock with Goth, with Metal, with Punk, and there is just this power to it that really has an array of subtlety that feels almost effortless to get you going. I mean the hits are iconic, Twist of Cain, Mother, and She Rides. The deep tracks are equally up there like The Hunter, End of Time, and my favorite on the album Not of This World. It's dark, brooding, and yet weirdly optimistic. Yeah, I said that, read the lyrics, you'll see what I mean.
JD's next pick is...
CANCION ANIMAL by SODA STEREO
Joe's last 2 picks are...
NATALIE MERCHANT - TIGERLILY
JOE: Here is yet another example of an artist going solo after leaving a mondo super successful band. Natalie Merchant fronted 10,000 Maniacs to super stardom but I don't know of a more personal journey album on display on my list than this one. It's intimacy, it's raw emotion, and it's incredibly deft songwriting capture you right from the start and let you know this is going to be a much different journey than you could have ever expected. It feels as much to the listener as I have read it did to Merchant herself, in that it was like shedding a 200 pound boulder off her shoulders and flinging down the hillside. I really feel, much like Alanis or Fiona Apple or Tom Petty that this album just laid it all out so perfectly it was going to be difficult to follow it up in other albums. Now here and there they're are individual tracks that capture the magic that Tigerlily had for Merchant but nothing that feels more complete. The hits are amazing with Carnival, Jealousy, and Wonder (one of my all time favorites songs) but there are songs like San Andreas Fault, Beloved Wife, and I May Know the Word that you listen to and never feel the same again. This is a get your tissues ready type of experience and it is for sure beyond perfect.
GUNS N' ROSE - APPETITE FOR DESTRUCTION
JOE: Without a doubt, one of the Top 5 biggest albums of my lifetime, and I think about that and think what a time to be alive then. That being said, in no way was it going to get disqualified for that reverence. I don't give a shit about popularity, this is my list, this is my 15 favorite perfect albums, and there was no fucking way this album would ever not make the list. It is in fact the album that sparked this blog post to begin with. I listen to an album that has so many fucking hits on it and go but those are all awesome. Even for as much shit as I give Paradise City, it doesn't diminish the fact at one point it was the most-played song on my iPod, and that wasn't even close. Yes, I admit to it, Paradise City gets me up and signing. It doesn't stop there by a long shot. I mean the deep tracks here are phenomenal Nighttrain, My Michelle, It Ain't Easy, Mr. Brownstone, and Think About You. The hits are beyond iconic, they are what every rock hit is measured by in Welcome to the Jungle, every rock ballad is measured by in Sweet Child O' Mine, and every sleazy poetic anthem is measured by in Rocket Queen. This album defined Rock N Roll in the 80's, changed everything for us long haired freaks, and made it cool to be uncool. There would be no Big Bang Theory without Appetite for Destruction, don't at me because you know deep inside I am right.
And that leaves the last pick and last words to the one and only JD Estrada...
QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE - LIKE CLOCKWORK
JD: Going over my notes, I had Stone Temple Pilot’s Purple on there and part of me was like, that shouldn’t make the cut. Then I listened to a bunch of albums front to back and when I queued up Purple, I was blown away by how good it is from front to back. A more consistent version of Core, it has some of my favorite slide guitar work and definitely has the band flexing some amazing muscles while never losing steam. And then I remembered Queens of the Stoneage’s Like Clockwork and was like oh hell no, that one’s better. So while I may think Purple is and shall always be STPs best album because not one track disappoints, I remember the moment I heard Like Clockwork, having high expectations, and having them blown out of the water. Musically speaking, that album is a pivot for QOTSA but from the getgo, you feel this is a whole other beast and that you’re looking into a musical rabbit hole. Lyrically, it might be my favorite QOTSA album, though it’s the overall groove of the entire album. It’s dark, edgy, has plenty of swag, has moments of gentle fury, and just feels absolutely complete. I can’t ask more from an album and when you put on replay all and it starts again, it just gets better with every listen.
And that’s my list....so what about OK Computer, Blood Sugar Sex Magick, or anything from the Beatles or the Who, and countless others? Well, both those albums and many others had at least one track that gave me reason to pause even if they end up being better albums. As for the Beatles, although I love the Beatles AND the Who, the Beatles and I aren’t as intimately linked as other bands and the Who I’m not sure any of their albums don’t have at least one track that makes me second guess even if they’re one of my favorite bands. Still, the great things about lists are that we can agree, disagree, discuss, and wax poetic for years but the most important thing is that we share good music, and I shall always raise my glass to that.
Peace, love, and maki rolls
WHAT DO YOU THINK OF OUR LISTS? AGREE, DISAGREE?
WHAT DO YOU THINK OF OUR LISTS? AGREE, DISAGREE?
WANT TO GIVE US YOUR OWN, PLEASE DO ALL OF THAT IN THE COMMENTS BELOW.
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