Too LOW: ILM Artist Poll #111 - Low - RESULTS

i received 36 tracks ballots, 32 albums ballots, and 17 covers ballots

i'll start off with albums and covers today

thanks to everyone who participated & submitted a ballot

HERE!!!!

going through top 10 albums. 23 different releases received votes

https://i.imgur.com/a0Pz7zh.png
10. Ones and Sixes
Released in 2015
176 points, 18 voters, 2 #1 votes

LET'S GET LOW!
LET'S FEEL LOW!
LOW LOW LOW!
LOW LOW LOW!

yesssss!

my #9 album...my hivemind remains strong

SHORTY GOT LOW LOW LOW LOW LOW LOW LOW LOW

I'm going to stick my neck out and say I was the only voter for three of my album choices.

only two, actually

https://i.imgur.com/15UssxB.png
9. The Great Destroyer
Released in 2005
178 points, 19 voters

I ranked Ones and Sixes higher but in the context of how many albums they have released and how comparatively overlooked it feels compared to their subsequent two albums, I think 10 is a good result.

I actually ranked The Great Destroyer ninth so very happy with that outcome!

just realized we should have waited until the ILM Artist Poll # hit 116

we're doing top 61 tracks (starting tomorrow) so

obviously the great destroyer is more of a traditionally 'indie rock' album than usual from them but it's so so good at that, i really love it.

One thing that struck me about The Great Destroyer when I revisited it for the purpose of working out my ballot is how much its reputation seems shaped by "California" and "Just Stand Back". If you put those tracks to one side, it's a pretty dark and menacing album, and makes much more sense as an effective continuation of the previous two.

I didn't realise until the noms thread The Great Destroyer was so poorly appreciated. Even as an early stuff head I still think it's great.

you can hear a clear progression from "canada", "in the drugs", "last snowstorm of the year" etc. on it

it reminds me a bit of the rockier end of hail to the thief for whatever reason

https://i.imgur.com/bmbxf6P.png
8. Drums and Guns
Released in 2007
196 points, 20 voters, 2 #1 votes

Zak was just so disengaged on that tour (although we had a great chat about The Recidivist, which he was much more excited about) it coloured my opinion of it for a long time.

It wasn't helped by an inferior version of Silver Rider to the one on the Murderer ep either if I'm honest.

we're doing top 61 tracks (starting tomorrow) so

!!! that's awesome :D

drums and guns in at #10 for me, but tbh as far full-lengths go i have a pretty clear top 8 tier

xps he'd already committed to leave the band at that point (& had previously briefly done so after the trust tour), so that's not surprising

to me drums and guns is 4 or 5 great tracks that really justify the unique approach they took (though the panning is still really annoying) & the rest are just ok, it's unusually uneven for them

https://i.imgur.com/MK1b1sY.png
7. Secret Name
Released in 1999
278 points, 25 voters, 1 #1 vote

RONG

In my head Drums and Guns is quite uneven (the middle mainly), but when I return to it it doesn't really feel that way? "Hatchet" stands out (or rather, doesn't stand out) as a bit throwaway I guess.

I suppose it's more (for me) that the album has clear emotional peaks ("Breaker", "Take Your Time", "Murderer") and everything else kind of feels like the landscape formed around them - even if in another context some of that supporting material would seem really standout.

https://i.imgur.com/gUe9a6U.png
6. HEY WHAT
Released in 2021
298 points, 27 voters

not too shabby for an album that came out a little over two months ago

Gah Secret Name is TOO LOW

I'm happy to see I wasn't the only person to put 'Drums & Guns' at #1.

But it being #8 and 'Secret Name' (my #3) at #7 suggests I love some different things about Low than most.

secret name spent most of the voting period at #4, it only fell down to #7 near the end. it being that low is a little surprising to me, though it's not a personal favourite (it's a transitional record overshadowed by those either side of it imo)

i am a little surprised that people aren't higher on the fridmann period overall but i guess it's probably their most polarising? have not done the maths to confirm though

https://i.imgur.com/77jqytu.png
5. I Could Live in Hope
Released in 1994
300 points, 25 voters, 2 #1 votes

When I compiled my albums list the top 6 had two albums from the 90s, 1 album from the 00s (i.e. Low's commercial peak I assume) and 3 albums from after the 00s. Which kind of underscored to me that there's not really a "thing" or even a small number of things that I like about Low.

I was also belatedly struck, after submitting my ballot, that when compiling my songs list it had not occurred to me to ever distinguish between songs sung by Alan, sung songs by Mimi and songs sung by both.

I Could Live In Hope is such an amazing album, a perfectly formed aesthetic straight out the gate. I find it really intriguing that it and Curtain are so captivating for me whereas Long Division mostly leaves me cold.

i remember reading in a fairly recent interview that they largely write songs separately but i'd never be able to tell that

xpost Drums & Guns, it was the album I moved up my list the most after re-listening for the poll. Ended up putting 5 tracks on my ballot as well.

long division is kinda an experiment with that early sound to see just how slow & sparse they could get but i agree the results aren't that compelling overall - the albums either side manage to push that aesthetic in much more interesting directions

'Seceet Name' cemented my emotional connection with Low. And I think it's wonderfully (simply, subtly, warmly) produced, and has some of their strongest songs. I remember finding it odd that (at least in the UK where I was at the time) 'Things We Lost In The Fire' was so beloved and was seemingly their "breakthrough" album, as (while I loved it) it felt more diffuse and a bit more indifferently or at least less richly produced.

I'm guessing 'Trust' isn't going to place, which I also found more coherent and more interestingly produced than 'TWLITF'...

HEY WHAT was my #2, but it really could have been 5th or something. it's in my top 8 for sure! I had Secret Name at 5th, as it goes, but it's probably my 2nd or 3rd all-time listened to low

xxpost in theory Long Division being the album of the 3 that sounds most like Durutti Column should appeal to me the most but I think the songs are mostly less strong and it also misses (for me at least) the beautiful guitar / bass interplay of the debut. Whereas the sound of the debut is totally hypnotic for me.

I always loved 'I Could Live In Hope' and 'Curtain' (the first two albums I heard circa '97), and always felt removed from 'Long Division' somewhat. Though I really love some of their tracks that push the minimalism sans prettiness to the extreme...

https://i.imgur.com/loL1fJX.png
4. The Curtain Hits the Cast
Released in 1996
348 points, 29 voters, 4 #1 votes

The album version of "Caroline" I like much, much less than the far starker and less pretty version on the 'Transmission' EP--maybe my favorite track of theirs for just pure desolation.

Surprised this is only 4th! But I guess it makes sense on reflection (will avoid spelling out my prediction of the top 3 order). This is definitely my most listened-to Low album albeit was not my number 1. Transfixing from the very first note of "Anon".

I would say that it does seem like my top 10 albums ballot and ILM's top ten results will match, which is surprising to me.

it's a masterpiece & could very easily have been my #1

Surprised to see 'Curtain' that low (though I had it lower at #6, personally). Always thought that was the most beloved of fans who jumped off at 'Trust' and 'Drums & Guns,' which I thought was most of their older fans...

My BF always complains when I play any other Low - he dismisses them as the Mamas and the Papas - but loves this album? But I don't know.

a gently flickering, barely there campfire. better at doing 'post-rock' than any 'post-rock' band

it had not occurred to me to ever distinguish between songs sung by Alan, sung songs by Mimi and songs sung by both.

Yeah I don't think it's a thing that makes sense to do with this band. It's not that you can't (wikipedia does) but sometimes the harmonies or counter lines by the other person are stronger than the "lead", it blurs the line of what an Alan-led or Mimi-led song is. The variation in that space is the band's strongest asset imo

xp--has your BF heard 'Double Negative,' 'Drums & Guns,' 'Bombscare,' 'Trust'? Mamas and the Papas wow (though I could see Low doing a great 'California Dreaming" cover)

xp - Agreed - a big part of their longevity for me is tied up in the way they find new ways to complicate that dynamic.

xp--has your BF heard 'Double Negative,' 'Drums & Guns,' 'Bombscare,' 'Trust'? Mamas and the Papas wow (though I could see Low doing a great 'California Dreaming" cover)

― Soundslike, Tuesday, 23 November 2021 00:05 (twenty-five seconds ago) bookmarkflaglink

In fairness I don't tend to play Double Negative or Drums & Guns or Hey What in front of him - it seems like asking for trouble.

https://i.imgur.com/9rMhKsz.png
3. Trust
Released in 2002
386 points, 27 voters, 4 #1 votes

i know there's quite a few huge trust fans here but it was still a little surprising to see it this high. it was the biggest beneficiary of the last two days of ballots though, it really shot up.

for most of the voting period the order of #3 - #7 was somewhere around the following:
I Could Live In Hope
The Curtain Hits the Cast
Secret Name
Trust
HEY WHAT

which felt more expected?

to me Trust at #3 seems about right! (was #4 for me, and it was hard to decide)

it's good but not quite up with their best. the bookends are great but i think "the great destroyer" generally did the lighter parts of the album better & i don't find the darkest parts ("the lamb", "john prine" etc.) super compelling. but i can understand how that is exactly what some want out of low

what do you think about amazing grace?

i don't want that out of low every time - to me, 'the lamb' and 'amazing grace' in particular - but i they can do that kind of thing like no one else

"the bookends are great"

comeon c'mon!

drums & guns was my #2-- it was my LOW gateway drug so it really holds a special place in my heart. TOO LOW

in silence > murderer > violent past is probably the best run on an album they've done

https://i.imgur.com/PQOHE4D.png
2. Things We Lost in the Fire
Released in 2001
390 points, 29 voters, 10 #1 votes

https://i.imgur.com/R6Zs01h.png
1. Double Negative
Released in 2018
402 points, 28 voters, 7 #1 votes

appropriate #1. what a fucking album

wow! had DN as 2 and curtain as 1 but what a result

I'm just going to say that I'm a little surprised and disappointed tbh.

Who else is correct and voted "Curtain" at #1?

these were always the top 2 (though trust got very close in the end) & i was surprised that they were such clear favourites - over half of all ballots voted for one of them as #1

A bit surprised Double Negative is #1 but it was my #1. It's probably in my top 25 albums of all time by this point. Truly remarkable album

Things We Lost in the Fire though... the album leaves me pretty cold and I don't get why it has such a strong rep. I'm happy to take "Laser Beam" and leave the rest

things we lost in the fire feels like the culmination of latter day LOW while double negative feels like a culmination of mid-period LOW. both are incredible albums and i would've been fine with either one taking #1

A little surprised that Long Division didn't make it at all.

Has one of my favorite "creepy" Low songs on it— "Turn." Also "Throw Out the Line" and "Stay".

full results:

1. Double Negative - 402 points, 28 voters, 7 #1 votes
2. Things We Lost in the Fire - 390 points, 29 voters, 10 #1 votes
3. Trust - 386 points, 27 voters, 4 #1 votes
4. The Curtain Hits the Cast - 348 points, 29 voters, 4 #1 votes
5. I Could Live In Hope - 300 points, 25 voters, 2 #1 votes
6. HEY WHAT - 298 points, 27 voters
7. Secret Name - 278 points, 25 voters, 1 #1 vote
8. Drums and Guns - 196 points, 20 voters, 2 #1 votes
9. The Great Destroyer - 178 points, 19 voters
10. Ones and Sixes - 176 points, 18 voters, 2 #1 votes
11. Long Division - 128 points, 17 voters
12. C'mon - 124 points, 15 voters
13. Christmas - 62 points, 8 voters
14. Bombscare - 54 points, 6 voters
15. Songs for a Dead Pilot - 46 points, 5 voters
16. The Invisible Way - 26 points, 4 voters
17. Murderer - 22 points, 2 voters
18. A Lifetime of Temporary Relief - 20 points, 2 voters
19. The Exit Papers - 14 points, 2 voters
19. One More Reason To Forget - 14 points, 1 voters
21. In the Fishtank 7 - 10 points, 2 voters
21. owL Remix - 10 points, 1 voters
23. Live at Eindhoven - 2 points, 1 voters

Oh no

I'm going to be controversial and say that I like them, but I actually am genuinely befuddled by the extreme love for Double Negative...and tbh, the new one.

The general line on Trust is that it is inconsistent but I find it very consistent throughout, and it's Things We Lost... that feels patchy but with very high highs for me.

going to go through covers fairly quickly

10. Lord, Can You Hear Me?
Originally performed by Spacemen 3, written by Pierce
Released on the A Tribute To Spacemen 3 compilation & A Lifetime of Temporary Relief
90 points, 9 voters
Studio version

I'm going to be controversial and say that I like them, but I actually am genuinely befuddled by the extreme love for Double Negative...and tbh, the new one.

― I'm a sovereign jizz citizen (the table is the table), Tuesday, 23 November 2021 00:48 (four minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

I'm curious to hear you unpack this a bit - you talked in the other thread about C'Mon and The Invisible Way but not these ones.

re: Double Negative, I can't think of another band that has made that kind of leap 25 years into their career

Things We Lost in the Fire though... the album leaves me pretty cold and I don't get why it has such a strong rep...

― Vinnie, Monday, November 22, 2021

I listened a few times through while voting, and in retrospect it seems a little distant and manicured to me. I don't remember thinking that at the time. I know that could be a criticism of Secret Name, too

i can understand longtime fans being somewhat alienated by double negative but at this point it's genuinely up there with like kid a, loveless etc. as far as pop-experimental rock albums go & it has some of their very best tunes even ignoring the production.

Yeah I said this previously but Double Negative has surprisingly indelible melodies.

Very few points separating Trust, Things We Lost, and DN. I had Things We Lost as #1. It was my gateway disc.

voted for more tracks from Trust and The Great Destroyer than from any of their other albums. they were my #2 and #3

8. Stay
Originally performed by Rihanna, written by Ekko/Parker/Loelv
Released as a single in 2013
92 points, 8 voters
Studio version

8. Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me
Originally performed by The Smiths, written by Marr/Morrissey
Released as as single in 2001 & on A Lifetime of Temporary Relief
92 points, 7 voters, 1 #1 vote
Studio version

Ended up being easier to rank than I thought - for me Fire, Trust, Double Negative, HW just absolutely nail an aesthetic start-to-finish with no dead weight, feel exceptionally replayable. Drums and Guns material is incredibly strong, but with the obvious production issue. Destroyer, Cast, Hope, Secret Name have really high highs but aren't quite top-to-bottom packed with favourites. The 2010 records are still strong but combined with songs that I really struggle to get on with - as much as I wish that weren't the case.

I think the comparison to Kid A or Loveless is apt! The production is striking but underneath that are some very strong songs

xp to Dan: Secret Name is a bit stronger for me than Things We Lost so I kinda get why people like that one, but nothing from either album made my ballot. I guess the connection there is Albini but I've liked other albums he's produced

yeah, that Albini produced those surprised me. I really liked Secret Name though, it was maybe too twee but it felt very intimate to me

7. Long Long Long
Originally performed by The Beatles, written by Harrison
Released on the "Joan of Arc" single & A Lifetime of Temporary Relief
96 points, 8 voters
Studio version

Always thought this live version with strings https://v3.fastupload.co/file/9766 of the Last Night cover beat out the box set recording which bumped it up a few places.

6. Blue-Eyed Devil
Originally performed & written by Soul Coughing
Released on the Teleconned Volume 1: We Want The Airwaves v/a compilation & A Lifetime of Temporary Relief
108 points, 8 voters, 2 #1 votes
Studio version

ooh what's the context of that live version, are there other tracks from the same performance with strings out there

HEY WHAT too Low! Long Division way too low. Oof.

5. Little Drummer Boy
As made famous by Harry Simeone Chorale, written by Simeone/Davis/Onorati
Released on Christmas
112 points, 8 voters, 1 #1 vote
Studio version

Glad to see other voters put Little Drummer Boy on their list of covers. Christmas drone

that was my favorite Christmas song as a little kid. I've heard it to death, but their version is very nice

4. I Started a Joke
Originally performed by The Bee Gees, written by Gibb/Gibb/Gibb
Released on the Jabberjaw...Pure Sweet Hell v/a compilation & A Lifetime of Temporary Relief
140 points, 9 voters, 2 #1 votes
Studio version

Yay!

I don’t agree with all these crazy results but I love seeing em

I'm curious to hear you unpack this a bit - you talked in the other thread about C'Mon and The Invisible Way but not these ones.

― Tim F, Monday, November 22, 2021 4:53 PM (forty-seven minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

I think the issue for me is that they're both great albums, but at a certain point, DN has more in common with the kinetic aural density of like a Tim Hecker record than with the side of Low that I love best, which is sparse and expansive. Curtain is my #1 because it feels like an endless plain at dusk.

I love the earlier more experimental ambient Low tracks a lot, and sort of wish that these newer records went more in that direction-- instead, that sort of sonic palette seems to be applied to the more 'song-y' side of the band.

3. Fearless
Originally performed by Pink Floyd, written by Gilmour/Waters
Released on the "Canada" single & A Lifetime of Temporary Relief
154 points, 12 voters, 1 #1 vote
Studio version

yup xp

if anything, the melodies on double negative seem to harken back to the sparser approach of the curtain hits the cast to me rather than the more 'pop' direction they'd been exploring for quite a while up until ones and sixes.

double negative was my #1 but curtain was my #2

Like, if anything, I want them to make more barebones tracks (like the really beautiful version of Silent Night) or lean heavier into the indeterminate warbling loops of "Shots & Ladders." Instead it feels a little more like they're really fucking around a lot with tracks from The Great Destroyer.

And maybe that's a part of it: the new records are really LOUD even when they're quiet, and I don't quite like that, tbh!

xpost Yeah - songs like "Always Up" or "Always Trying To Work It Out" or "Poor Sucker" remind me of say "Drag" or "Slide" or "Anon" or "Coattails": insistent rather than conventionally songful.

Hey What doesn't fit that comparison though - definitely reminds me of The Great Destroyer more than anything else.

I also agree that a more abstract / ambient approach would make sense as a next direction.

2. Transmission
Originally performed by Joy Division, written by Curtis/Hook/Morris/Sumner
Released on Transmission EP
156 points, 11 voters, 4 #1 votes
Studio version

1. Low & Dirty Three - Down by the River
Originally performed by Neil Young & Crazy Horse, written by Young
Released on In the Fishtank 7
186 points, 12 voters, 5 #1 votes
Studio version

a more abstract/ambient approach is something they've pretty strongly toyed with on the last two albums & they could easily push much further into that next time if they feel like it

the "down by the river" cover is pretty transcendent

here's the full covers results:

1. Down by the River - 186 points, 12 voters, 5 #1 votes
2. Transmission - 156 points, 11 voters, 4 #1 votes
3. Fearless - 154 points, 12 voters, 1 #1 vote
4. I Started a Joke - 140 points, 9 voters, 2 #1 votes
5. Little Drummer Boy - 112 points, 8 voters, 1 #1 vote
6. Blue-Eyed Devil - 108 points, 8 voters, 2 #1 votes
7. Long Long Long - 96 points, 8 voters
8. Stay - 92 points, 8 voters
8. Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me - 92 points, 7 voters, 1 #1 vote
10. Lord, Can You Hear Me? - 90 points, 9 voters
11. Back Home Again - 66 points, 5 voters
12. I'm On Fire - 50 points, 5 voters
13. Let's Stay Together - 50 points, 6 voters
14. Sunshine - 44 points, 3 voters
15. Carnival Queen - 42 points, 4 voters
16. Blue Christmas - 32 points, 3 voters
17. Surfer Girl - 28 points, 3 voters
18. ...I Love - 26 points, 4 voters
19. Heartbeat - 24 points, 4 voters
19. Nowhere Man - 24 points, 3 voters
21. War on War - 20 points, 1 voter, 1 #1 vote
22. Silent Night - 18 points, 2 voters
23. Open Arms - 2 points, 1 voter

i'll be back starting the tracks countdown tomorrow, starting a little earlier probably

i was one of the #1s for "down by the river." i had "i'm on fire" at #2, glad to see other ppl voted for it too

xxp

And maybe that's a part of it: the new records are really LOUD even when they're quiet, and I don't quite like that, tbh!

― I'm a sovereign jizz citizen (the table is the table), Monday, November 22, 2021

that's interesting. makes me realize I love that when Low as a soft band became really loud - there was something about that to me

my favorite of their covers is pretty easily “blue-eyed devil”. wish soul coughing sounded like that (ok not really)

The first 60-80 minutes of that covers list would make a pretty good album tbh

They're a band I'd love to see do a covers record.

Or honestly, given the territory they're ik sonically the last few years, and self-covers record in their current sound-world would be pretty awesome (a la The Knife's 'Shaken Up Versions').

For a little reading before the songs rollout--found the interview Alan graciously did with me almost 20 years ago, when 'Trust' had leaked but not yet been issued. Some pretty interesting thoughts in his responses (no thanks to my amateur fan-perspective questions), and observations that ring as true 28 years into the story of Low as (at the time) 8 years in.

It was so cool of him to do the email-based interview--as I mention in the preable, I had no outlet for an interview and wasn't in any way a professional, but he took the time while they were on tour.

http://www.trustlow.com/articles/2002-10-30_popmatters.php

Great album poll results, I think the only one I had that didn’t place was “In the Fishtank.” I’d be very curious about how the Burton produced albums are rated in ten years or so. They have this Berlin-era Bowie vibe for me right.

Unsurprisingly, I find “Double Negative” to be their “Low”!

xp
that was a really good interview, Soundslike

Things We Lost in the Fire
HEY WHAT
Double Negative
Trust
Secret Name
I Could Live in Hope
The Curtain Hits the Cast
Long Division
Ones and Sixes
Drums and Guns

I was the only vote for their cover of "War on War," it's awesome. (I've never heard the original.)

I like the cover of "Fearless" because the song itself rules, but they don't really do anything with it. Unlike "Down by the River" and "Transmission," they don't make it a Low song.

I ultimately cut all covers from my Top 30 ballot, but "Down" and "Trans." were the last to go.

My #1 was Ones and Sixes, I really can get lost in that album, which is very consistent and like an enclosed universe. Double Negative probably gives a similar impression. I voted for Long Division over I could live in hope, both high in my ballot, surprised this album is not more loved. Trust, Things We Lost in the Fire, and The Curtain Hits the Cast (voted for in that order next to each other) I find of similar strength, with many highlights, but with passages that occasionally keep me at bay over an album length.

Curtain was my #1. I'm actually surprised less of the current era fans get behind it, not least because of the imperious DYKHTW - which unsurprisingly became the centrepiece of touring Double Negative since it"s clearly the progenitor in their history.

Who else was the Exit Papers voter? Love that record.

I didn't expect "Things We Lost in the Fire" to get the most #1 votes, at least not by that margin. It was my #2, and DN my #1, so I can't really complain.

Their covers have never done much for me, having not heard most of them, I didn't send a covers ballot. "Transmission" is too slow (a dumb and obvious thing to say, but it is what it is), "Lord Can You Hear Me?" is one of the worst songs on an otherwise excellent S3 tribute album. "Sunshine" works as a stylistic coda to "I Could Live In Hope" but is otherwise bland and uninspired. I do like the Smiths cover though.

Enjoyed reading that interview Soundslike, first time I read his thoughts outside their music, thanks for sharing !

A day behind here but I did not expect those album results - was sure Curtain would be a runaway #1, Things We Lost and Trust were my top two so I'm happy to see the love for them. I know it's early days but I think Hey What improves slightly on Double Negative, just a bit stronger melodically.

Hey What is more accessible because on that one vs DN the vocals are not also buried in noise, and that discrepancy sounds more powerful to me as a result as well.

man, that "down by the river" cover is something else

i am unfortunately awake far too early so i'll kick off the tracks rollout soon

https://i.imgur.com/itAHVla.png
61. I Remember
Released on Secret Name (1999)
176 points, 5 voters
Studio version
Alternate version (released on "Immune" single)

https://i.imgur.com/InlDTd8.png
61. Nightingale
Released on C'mon (2011)
176 points, 5 voters
Studio version

almost voted for 'I Remember'! one of many Low songs that are perfect in the context of the album its on

Love "I Remember," and it was one of the last I cut from my list of tracks.

Who did the images?

it's all my work

for those who are into such things

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1GrLJ5GUNVF4UJtRDA9iT0?si=ea3c57f12296426f

Images are v nice ufo, good work

https://i.imgur.com/u3J7sDx.png
60. Gentle
Released on Ones and Sixes (2015)
177 points, 6 voters
Studio version

ah thanks whiney, my graphic design skills are fairly amateur but i'm quite happy with how most of the images for this turned out

i'm a big fan of "gentle", my favourite from ones and sixes. probably the most direct predecessor to double negative? the slight shift halfway through is wonderful

Ones and 60s

I Remember was my #5. The layers of tape hiss make it feel like some mysterious recovered broadcast from a ghostly numbers station.

Low should have played the Roadhouse in Twin Peaks season 3.

Good call

https://i.imgur.com/OBUpf8m.png
58. Like a Forest
Released on Things We Lost In The Fire (2001)
186 points, 6 voters
Music video

https://i.imgur.com/v5An7Mn.png
58. Spanish Translation
Released on Ones and Sixes (2015)
186 points, 7 voters, 1 #1 vote
Studio version

Whoever put Spanish Translation at #1, I will buy you a beer

https://i.imgur.com/8fcmPk4.png
57. Days Like These
Released on HEY WHAT (2021)
202 points, 7 voters
Music video

I'll have that beer. As incomprehensible as it will be for some, I hesitated between Gentle, Spanish Translation, Caroline and Anon as #1. I think it's the combination of softness, delicate harmonies, hisses that have won my heart over. I'd play Spanish Translation as an introduction to the band, it's caressing and abrasive, drifting, the vocal line is addictive, love Mimi's backing vocals too. I guess it speaks of the talent of the band that you can vote for almost any of their songs as #1.

"everything once within reason" <3 <3 <3

i dig that alternate version of "i remember" with mimi on vocals that sounds like a lost factory recordings track

"Like a Forest" is a song of theirs that was the last one cut from TWLITF for me, mostly because I used to *hate* it, yet in the past few years it's become one of my favorite tracks on that particular record.

One thing I've noticed with Low is how one single line perfectly sung can make you fall in love with a song
'It doesn't have to end this way'

https://i.imgur.com/jdbZn3t.png
55. Belarus
Released on Drums and Guns (2007)
206 points, 6 voters
Music video

https://i.imgur.com/526cNqg.png
55. John Prine
Released on Trust (2002)
206 points, 7 voters
Studio version

xp to Nabozo: I spaced out and forgot to submit my ballot, but "Caroline" would have been my #1

John Prine is such a weird song to me, it's like a match going out. It seems like it's setting you up for another big crescendo and then it just slowwwwly fades away.

one of their creepiest/funniest songs

https://i.imgur.com/ivNfyCs.png
54. Soon
Released on Secret Name (1999)
216 points, 8 voters, 1 #1 vote
Studio version

There are some really funny moments on Trust, for all of its doom and gloom

i couldn't quite fit "belarus" on my ballot but it's a fascinating direction i wish they'd explored further

Roll out reminding me of all the great songs I left off my ballot.

https://i.imgur.com/gXLOGqz.png
53. Low, Piano Magic & Transient Waves - Sleep at the Bottom
Released as a single (1998) & on A Lifetime of Temporary Relief
233 points, 8 voters, 1 #1 vote
Studio version

No real complaints but just noting there's already been 7 songs that didn't make my top 50. I picked a ton of TWLITF songs but not "In a Forest," and I like a lot of Ones and Sixes but I think only one song made my top 50. I'm going to be really interested in seeing what I chose that doesn't place at all.

That single really does use Comic Sans

it's one of the best fonts out there

https://i.imgur.com/ZhggrLN.png
52. Dancing and Blood
Released on Double Negative (2018)
237 points, 7 voters
Music video
Live at NOX ORAE 2019

oh i should have mentioned, 175 different tracks were voted for

XD

Cool, glad to see Sleep at the Bottom make it (which reminds me, hats off to the other A Lifetime of Temporary Relief voter in the albums section).

only four of the songs announced so far were on my ballot. "dancing and blood" was in my top ten

I forgot to vote for "Sleep at the Bottom" because thinking about all the material on A Liftime... was too exhausting a proposition, but it's lovely. Reminds me of A.R. Kane's 69 but prettier.

the graphic design here is so sweet & it's so good to see the best band in the world getting so much love.

https://i.imgur.com/qT2u2xY.png
50. Especially Me
Released on C'mon (2011)
238 points, 9 voters, 1 #1 vote
Music video

https://i.imgur.com/o1BZTnP.png
50. More
Released on HEY WHAT (2021)
238 points, 10 voters, 1 #1 vote
Music video

5 of the first 10 tracks garnered a #1 vote. Shows the depth of the catalog and how everyone finds their own personal Low track.

'Soon' was my number one. Beautiful song.

As I mentioned on the other thread, I did unranked for tracks. Don't know how the rest of you did it.

By picking a solid top 5 and ballparking the rest

https://i.imgur.com/HQi1J1Y.png
49. Immune
Released on Secret Name (1999)
250 points, 5 voters, 1 #1 vote
Studio version

I think there is a music video for this one but it's the only one that's not on YouTube

“John Prine” was one of those tracks that hung off the list for awhile but roped itself back into orbit. Kinda has a later-era Swans vibe going.

i'd forgotten that alan & mimi do sing on swans' "lunacy" until digging deep for this poll

I remember being shocked that the last song on HW was the only one to have drums in it because it sounds so much like there are some buried in the heaviness of “More.” Great Mimi cut.

God bless whoever put "Especially Me" as their #1. It's underrated.

they did a lot of heavy side-chaining with the drums on most of hey what before removing the drums from the mix so there's still the ghost of them there pretty much. i think there might still be some electronic pulses too, but "the price you pay" is the only one with live drums for sure

https://i.imgur.com/S5potwi.png
48. Anon
Released on The Curtain Hits The Cast (1996)
257 points, 7 voters
Studio version

https://i.imgur.com/5uJmgDV.png
47. Just Like Christmas
Released on Christmas (1999)
266 points, 7 voters
Studio version

xpost the last 5 songs really capture Low's diversity pretty well. I only voted for "Anon" of these, but all of them were on my long list before I chopped it down.

Absolutely that, voted Especially Me and Just Like Christmas quite high. I can see the latter being dismissed by hardcore fans possibly? To me it's a classic and integral to my festive activities!

i never quite got into their christmas tunes. might have to remedy that this year

https://i.imgur.com/V1Rs7TN.png
46. Venus
Released as a single (1999) & on A Lifetime of Temporary Relief
270 points, 11 voters
16 points for "Venus (Time Stereo Dub Mix)"
Studio version
Time Stereo Dub mix

another that didn't quite make my ballot but is still excellent

of a piece with "over the ocean"

Just Like Christmas is Top 5 for me!

Me too!

Especially Me was my #1.

John Prine was my #2 and lots of others were my votes. Venus just outside the top 10.

I would have laid hard cash Just Like Christmas would have been top 10 in the poll.

I always play Christmas obsessively at this time of the year. I also love the lyrics for "Just Like Christmas", they really capture how memories can be both vague and sharp simultaneously.

https://i.imgur.com/kBxtZbo.png
45. Always Up
Released on Double Negative (2018)
271 points, 6 voters
Studio version
Live at NOX ORAE 2019

top 10 for me, love that organ & bass flute

they really capture how memories can be both vague and sharp simultaneously.

In many ways one of the greatest evocations of memory in all of art, some vague facts or ideas linked with a couple of specific points.

"Trust" the hardest to whittle down, but across all the records it seemed the angrier, weirder-production tracks like John Prine remained standing and left a much stronger impression over the breezier Canadas and Californias. I guess it's the name of the game, but still painful to fit into the 30. Maybe they felt cul-de-sac'd by the same since the last two records.

https://i.imgur.com/PU8peJD.png
44. Lies
Released on Ones and Sixes (2015)
273 points, 9 voters
Music video

one of the highlights from ones and sixes but i couldn't quite get it on my ballot

https://i.imgur.com/G1mwVPw.png
43. July
Released on Things We Lost In The Fire (2001)
274 points, 10 voters
Music video

'always up' was my #2-- such a beautiful song. i think the only reason it's not my #1 is because i've only lived with it for a few years

I love the triptych of "Always Up" / "Always Trying To Work It Out" / "Always In The Dark" - feels like a real descent.

Happy to see some of the C'mon tracks make it, after the album DNPed in the albums poll. "Nightingale" is one of those tracks that might sound generic or sleepy to some, but to me has an ineffable beauty

Very impressed by the variety of the tracks so far, what a band

https://i.imgur.com/lyJT2xI.png
42. California
Released on The Great Destroyer (2005)
276 points, 9 voters
Music video

Xp the word "Always" falls on the same beats in all three songs, makes me wonder if they were all born out of the same idea

https://i.imgur.com/Tcj5iLG.png
41. The Price You Pay (It Must Be Wearing Off)
Released on HEY WHAT (2021)
277 points, 9 voters
Studio version

last one for today. i really meant to get through these a little quicker but i got distracted. probably should have settled for stopping at 46, oh well

one of my favorites from the new one. the way mimi's voice is consumed by and struggles with the noize section is incredible

yes, one of my faves as well, and in my top 10

I didn't vote for anything from HEY WHAT more out of principle -- too new, too many other great Low songs -- but in all fairness should have voted for The Price You Pay and one or two others. If this poll had happened next year then I probably would have.

“Venus” was a really lovely surprise while doing a deep dive through their Temporary Relief comp.

So far I've voted for Gentle, Spanish Translation, Dancing and Blood (love that pulse sound), Especially Me, Lies, Anon (too low ! that sustained note in the near-void) and July. Would have liked to vote for Immune, it was one of the last one to go.

For me, John Prine is the centrepiece of Trust, it feels like an exercise to produce a seven minute track with the maximum amount of space between the notes (even for Low). It encapsulates what the album is about, at least for me, and that's why I voted for it even though I don't think it's necessarily the best song on the album.

I just realized that Pissing (on GD) has the same chord progression (I think) as John Prine and sees them taking that exercise to the opposite extreme -- maximize the number of notes filling up the space between simple chord changes.

July ended up being my #3, they restrain themselves from taking the brakes off and doing the more maximal sun-breaking-through-the-melancholy a lot more than I remembered but when they do (Like a Forest, Soon, Will the Night etc) it's devastatingly effective.

I was the #1 voter for Immune. Secret Name was my route into Low after I had a real 'moment' with Immune during the John Peel Festive 50 countdown in late-Dec 1999 - it was played unannounced and felt so much more insistent and coiled and warm than I'd previously perceived them to be; I was really surprised and delighted when I found out who it was.

California also in my top 5 - such an addictive track!, and really interesting that this and Just Like Christmas haven't just defaulted to top 10 placings. I think that (from a UK perspective at least), these two are kind of 'the hits'.

A little shocked that Anon was so low, but then again I'm shocked that Curtain wasn't voted #1 album.

I'm starting to think I should have ranked my tracks so I'd agree with this list more.

Immune and California both in my top 10 - Immune is such a simple song but it's totally perfect; California maybe not totally representative of The Great Destroyer but it definitely unlocked that album for me.

only voted for one of these tracks so far, but I like a lot of them!

I've been thinking a lot about any reasons beyond sentiment and age that might influence my feelings toward Low's output, and I realize that there might be something about the earlier albums *lyrically* that could be part of it. The lyrics of the early records feel hermetic and cryptic yet strangely associative and narrativizing (I think of "Mom Says" or "Cut" as good examples). Starting around "The Great Destroyer," there was a sense (for me) that their lyric was expanding and becoming more outward-facing, and I think that the more recent records certainly put that in relief, in that they're pretty direct sociopolitical statements. And maybe that's why the more threatening and cryptic vibes of tracks like "Murderer" or "Take Your Time" or "Dancing and Blood" tend to be the tracks from the later records that feel most like older Low to me, and why I like them best of the newer stuff...there's something about suggestion that is much more interesting to me than directness.

That could just be me spitballing too much, tho.

so far:
61. Nightingale - 176 points, 5 voters
61. I Remember - 176 points, 5 voters
60. Gentle - 177 points, 6 voters
58. Spanish Translation - 186 points, 7 voters, 1 #1 vote
58. Like a Forest - 186 points, 6 voters
57. Days Like These - 202 points, 7 voters
55. John Prine - 206 points, 7 voters
55. Belarus - 206 points, 6 voters
54. Soon - 216 points, 8 voters, 1 #1 vote
53. Sleep at the Bottom - 233 points, 8 voters, 1 #1 vote
52. Dancing and Blood - 237 points, 7 voters
50. More - 238 points, 10 voters, 1 #1 vote
50. Especially Me - 238 points, 9 voters, 1 #1 vote
49. Immune - 250 points, 5 voters, 1 #1 vote
48. Anon - 257 points, 7 voters
47. Just Like Christmas - 266 points, 7 voters
46. Venus - 270 points, 11 voters
45. Always Up - 271 points, 6 voters
44. Lies - 273 points, 9 voters
43. July - 274 points, 10 voters
42. California - 276 points, 9 voters
41. The Price You Pay (It Must Be Wearing Off) - 277 points, 9 voters

https://i.imgur.com/9nQOrwL.png
40. Tempest
Released on Double Negative (2018)
278 points, 7 voters
Studio version
EarthQuaker Session

What is that thing on the cover anyway

some sort of mask i think

i really love "tempest", those waves of sidechained distortion are gorgeous

https://i.imgur.com/whaWxK5.png
39. Last Snowstorm of the Year
Released on Trust (2002)
279 points, 8 voters
Studio version

I love Tempest so much! I discovered that EarthQuaker session yesterday while following the rollout, and looked back in disbelief at how low I had it on my ballot. Really a perfect summation of what's so great about Double Negative: there are amazing, amazing songs at its core.

Last Snowstorm of the Year is also incredible. :)

https://i.imgur.com/XX4CDB1.png
37. Whitetail
Released on Things We Lost In The Fire (2001)
285 points, 8 voters
Music video

https://i.imgur.com/GpBCMwN.png
37. Landslide
Released on Ones and Sixes (2015)
285 points, 11 voters
Studio version

I know you can probably say something like this about pretty much any song so far, but how does the band that wrote Landslide have 36 better songs? They really might be the best band.

I am here for the content-free filler while everyone else is busy.

Oh shit, they're playing here in February! I should snag tickets.

“tempest” didn’t make my ballot but it’s a really incredible track - those last 30 seconds where it sounds like the band is drowning

https://i.imgur.com/nEItCQr.png
35. Weight of Water
Released on Secret Name (1999)
291 points, 9 voters, 1 #1 vote
Music video

https://i.imgur.com/cUMZQMo.png
35. No Comprende
Released on Ones and Sixes (2015)
291 points, 11 voters
Studio version

“whitetail” otoh did make my ballot - amazing creeping dread

I had Weight of Water at number one and I can't quite believe that it's so far down in the rankings
Same for Whitetail which was second in my list

Hearing "No Comprende" the last time I saw them live was the precise moment where I recognized, whoa, I clearly didn't give "Ones and Sixes" the time and attention it deserved.

https://i.imgur.com/nm1a8s8.png
34. Broadway (So Many People)
Released on The Great Destroyer (2005)
302 points, 7 voters
Studio version

https://i.imgur.com/PtF6Tfu.png
33. The Lamb
Released on Trust (2002)
303 points, 7 voters, 1 #1 vote
Studio version

I guess for the 25th time I am going to need to give Trust another try to see why you all rate it so highly amongst all their albums. Like all things Low I love every album but I still have always placed this album near the bottom of my personal rankings. And I only nominated one song in my top 30.

Whitetail way too lowwwwwwwwww

https://i.imgur.com/09hXPao.png
31. Violent Past
Released on Drums and Guns (2007)
310 points, 10 voters, 1 #1 vote
Studio version
Live 2013

https://i.imgur.com/3HepswN.png
31. Will the Night
Released on Songs For A Dead Pilot (1997) & Secret Name (1999)
310 points, 11 voters, 1 #1 vote
56 points for the Songs For A Dead Pilot version
Songs For A Dead Pilot music video
Secret Name version
Peel Session
Demo

Woah. Some serious TOO low placings here. Weight of Water - I thought was a lock for Top Ten. I adore Broadway but I can see how it may not be everyone's idea of Low.

I'm a Dead Pilots voter for Will The Night. In retrospect it's another of those recordings that sound a little like the early stuff. A bit more ambient maybe.

Dead Pilots was my entry level to Low and I'm a little concerned my Number one might not make it?

There are number one places all over the place here. This is unprecedented, right?

https://i.imgur.com/xstlYtJ.png
30. White Horses
Released on HEY WHAT (2021)
331 points, 10 voters
Music video

there is not a huge amount of consensus with the #1 votes yeah

not sure exactly how unusual that is though

The Lamb was my #1. Every distant creak and reverberant stomp is magical to my ears.

I could probably have specified the Dead Pilot version to be honest because that's the one I prefer.

The Lamb is astonishing.

I think the fitting irony of “Too LOW” is that the complaint really applies to anything in the roll-out that misses the top ten.

love all of the last three

"will the night" is great in both versions, the dead pilot version is proto-grouper & the secret name version makes the most of strings out of any of their tracks

"white horses" is my favourite from hey what, those guitar textures are incredible

https://i.imgur.com/Jsn50Td.png
29. Shots & Ladders
Released on Trust (2002)
352 points, 14 voters
2 points for "Shots & Ladders 2" (from the "Canada" single & A Lifetime of Temporary Relief)
Trust version
Shots & Ladders 2

a lot of the ones I voted for are now showing up. The Lamb is the first track so far that is top 10 for me

https://i.imgur.com/qwaodUD.png
28. Breaker
Released on Drums and Guns (2007)
370 points, 13 voters
20 points for "Breaker (Dub Plate)"
Music video
Live at L'Omnibus 2007
Retribution Gospel Choir version
Breaker (Dub Plate) (yes, it's mislabeled)

while the live version would have been great on a great destroyer 2, the sparseness of the studio version's arrangement has a real power to it

my hand just kills and kills
there’s gotta be an end to that

D&G stuff got a big bump for me thanks to DN and HW- and the “Breaker” video is top tier

https://i.imgur.com/MaRXqke.png
27. Shame
Released on Long Division (1995)
394 points, 13 voters
Music video

I voted for the Breaker (Dub Plate), and earlier for Venus (Time Stereo Dub Mix). After the first few records I get most excited about Low when their template gets distressed or abstracted.

the time stereo dub mix of "venus" is great yeah

i'm not huge on long division but "shame" is one of the real gems from it

I never knew they had all these alternative rock-era music videos for their Vernon Yard records!

I love Long Division as a limit-case of their early form, but I get how it can be kind of a tough hang.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EbCF2OqZOfE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AESrPcQRgc0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R_3q0_m7JCY

didn’t specify this version on my ballot but the IG live performance of “breaker” literally brought me to tears

https://i.imgur.com/YKedsTm.png
26. In The Drugs
Released on Trust (2002)
397 points, 14 voters
Studio version

last one for today

i think “shame” was my sole long division vote

Looks like 120 Minutes played "Shame" once, as the final video on July 9, 1995

And "Over the Ocean" once, also as the final video, on December 15, 1996

secret name had a lot of videos, "weight of water", "don't understand", "home" and "immune" all got videos but they're not officially uploaded on youtube & some of them aren't there at all

& i was kinda amazed that the songs for a dead pilot "will the night" got a video

I’m not generally big on lyrics but those of In The Drugs completely get to me.

i'm not huge on long division but "shame" is one of the real gems from it

Same here - I first came to it via the video on the DVD that came with the box set (I haven't seen any of those clips in a long time though).

Weight of Water is one I'd overlooked until I went through the albums again. Shots and Ladders another great track - probably my favourite album closer of theirs?

“Shame” was the only Long Division track to make the ballot for me as well, though “Violence” came close.

I included 4 from Long Division in my top 30, but none in the top 10.

My ballot favored early Low.

y’all need to get right with your opinions about “stay” and “below & above”

long division > i could live in hope (sorry)

I ranked Long Division third on my albums list, it's awesome.

I keep saying this but it blows my mind that anyone could rank a song like "Broadway" over a song like "Whitetail."

I wouldn't even out "Broadway" in my top 80 or 100

I swear if the top ten are all from post-Trust albums I will absolutely lose it.

yeah "Shame" is in my Low top 5 trax

there's a r/indieheads low poll i can point you to that has most of its top 10 from ones and sixes

xp

I love Broadway

i also love broadway and almost suggested BROADWAY….SO MANY PEO-POLL as the name for this thread

Great album poll results, I think the only one I had that didn’t place was “In the Fishtank.” I’d be very curious about how the Burton produced albums are rated in ten years or so. They have this Berlin-era Bowie vibe for me right.

Unsurprisingly, I find “Double Negative” to be their “Low”!

― Western® with Bacon Flavor, Monday, November 22, 2021 10:33 PM

I thought of this post tonight, and was thinking about a similar analogy with Eno's work with Talking Heads, where their first record together has more of a "traditional" producer/band dynamic, and then goes on to become more of a collaboration over the next few records, eventually down to similar setups where the band lays down tracks, leaves, and the producer does their thing.

"Shame" made my ballot and "Violence" would have if we could extend it a few more places. Long Division is not one of my favorites, but still a solid listen with those highs

I just realized that Pissing (on GD) has the same chord progression (I think) as John Prine and sees them taking that exercise to the opposite extreme

Yeah, I think "Majesty/Magic" also uses the same progression (and just sounds like a lesser version of John Prine in general). "Pissing" always sounded like their take on Slowdive's "Avalyn" to me.

"Broadway" clicked for me when someone in another thread here said it sounded like the answer to the yearning posed in "Lullaby."

The Lamb (only seven voters !), Shame, White Horses, Weight of Water, No Comprende and Shots & Ladder were on my ballot from yesterday. I can hardly complain about the songs that are not my idea of Low because I doubt my votes were perfectly coherent. I sound like a broken record already, but for me it's a testimony of their consistency. I'd have a hard time singling out a song that does not belong in the results.

Drums and Guns was one album where I only voted for one song, but Breaker with its minimal wave and claps is totally lovely.

"Violent Past" was my #1. The studio recording is a beast, cathartic noise over a churning, insistent, inevitable beat. Like a Nine Inch Nails experiment mixed with Zeppelin's "Kashmir". The lyrics are simple but horrifyingly grim. On the announcement thread somebody wrote that In Silence/Murderer/Violent Past is one of their best three song runs, which is completely OTM. It's their best closing stretch for sure, even if D&G as a whole isn't in their top tier of albums.

yeah, well put. the organ + its embrace of that sort of carthatic distortion are also obvious predecessors for double negative

i'd agree it's their best closer unless you ignore "dark" in favour of "do you know how to waltz"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nq--nrquHIA

this is terrible quality but lmao

yeah, well put. the organ + its embrace of that sort of carthatic distortion are also obvious predecessors for double negative
i'd agree it's their best closer unless you ignore "dark" in favour of "do you know how to waltz"
― ufo, Thursday, November 25, 2021 11:18 AM (forty-two minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

For what it's worth, I'd take In Metal, Shots & Ladders, DJ and The Price you Pay over both. At the risk of sounding blasphemous, the 14 minutes of DYKHTW sound very cinematographic, quite like a GYBE track, but leave me cold emotionally.

i'd easily take "do you know how to waltz" over anything in gy!be's catalogue

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5t_RcCOvhF0

there is this bootleg of them performing it together once though

several XP - I’d do one better and say “Take Your Time” through “Violent Past” is their best album run.

lol y'all are fucking insane

I mean at least I know now whose tastes I can trust, I guess.

I voted for ten pre-Trust songs, I think my ballot was fairly varied. I voted for five songs from "Things We Lost In The Fire", the most of any album. However, my two favourite albums are Double Negative and The Great Destroyer, which are about as different as it gets from the pre-Trust style.

My two favs are Ones and Sixes and Long Division, the latter of which seems to mark me as an outlier even among people who hold the early stuff in high regard. (s/o to Brad though!)

I put two songs from Long Division in my top 10, one of them at #1.

I'm impressed there's so little "I like the early stuff" bias in all these results, even if few of the tracks thus far were in my list (and probably most in my list won't place).

I've been a fan for 25 years, and loved "the early stuff". But I also loved the next phase thereafter, and the most recent phase. Seems like a shame to close the door after the first three records, just because those captured a certain crystaline sound and approach. The breadth and itch for experimentation was always there, even from the beginning. If they'd kept on retreading that ground faithfully, would we even be talking about them in the present tense?

Agree with that statement but I’m sure there will be more early stuff as go further in the poll.

i had to cut “lazy” from my ballot but i still hope the first low song i ever heard places

just catching up with the results! (spotify playlist is updated too)

so far...

61. Nightingale - 176 points, 5 voters
61. I Remember - 176 points, 5 voters
60. Gentle - 177 points, 6 voters
58. Spanish Translation - 186 points, 7 voters, 1 #1 vote
58. Like a Forest - 186 points, 6 voters
57. Days Like These - 202 points, 7 voters
55. John Prine - 206 points, 7 voters
55. Belarus - 206 points, 6 voters
54. Soon - 216 points, 8 voters, 1 #1 vote
53. Sleep at the Bottom - 233 points, 8 voters, 1 #1 vote
52. Dancing and Blood - 237 points, 7 voters
50. More - 238 points, 10 voters, 1 #1 vote
50. Especially Me - 238 points, 9 voters, 1 #1 vote
49. Immune - 250 points, 5 voters, 1 #1 vote
48. Anon - 257 points, 7 voters
47. Just Like Christmas - 266 points, 7 voters
46. Venus - 270 points, 11 voters
45. Always Up - 271 points, 6 voters
44. Lies - 273 points, 9 voters
43. July - 274 points, 10 voters
42. California - 276 points, 9 voters
41. The Price You Pay (It Must Be Wearing Off) - 277 points, 9 voters

40. Tempest - 278 points, 7 voters
39. Last Snowstorm of the Year - 279 points, 8 voters
37. Whitetail - 285 points, 8 voters
37. Landslide - 285 points, 11 voters
35. Weight of Water - 291 points, 9 voters, 1 #1 vote
35. No Comprende - 291 points, 11 voters
34. Broadway (So Many People) - 302 points, 7 voters
33. The Lamb - 303 points, 7 voters, 1 #1 vote
31. Will the Night - 310 points, 11 voters, 1 #1 vote
31. Violent Past - 310 points, 10 voters, 1 #1 vote
30. White Horses - 331 points, 10 voters
29. Shots & Ladders - 352 points, 14 voters
28. Breaker - 370 points, 13 voters
27. Shame - 394 points, 13 voters
26. In The Drugs - 397 points, 14 voters

https://i.imgur.com/m6JDG3r.png
25. Always Trying to Work It Out
Released on Double Negative (2018)
400 points, 12 voters
Music video
Live at NOX ORAE 2019

the bridge where it all dissolves into the most beautiful noise is incredible

it's one i expected that it could have made it to the top 10, since it seemed to be a favourite on double negative

https://i.imgur.com/SCThwpz.png
24. Monkey
Released on The Great Destroyer (2005)
405 points, 13 voters
Music video
Studio version

oh i didn't even consider that it's thanksgiving in the us lol that's why it's quiet on here today

"monkey" always reminds me of "bullet with butterfly wings" lol

I imagine there would be more early stuff bias if the band's later stuff weren't so awesome.

Late cut, undeniable album opener

yeah, it’s, how do you say, the mood

https://i.imgur.com/TxFtRDR.png
23. The Plan
Released on The Curtain Hits The Cast (1996)
417 points, 12 voters
Studio version
Demo

one of their prettiest moments

the best song ever

https://i.imgur.com/XZVL86H.png
22. Coattails
Released on The Curtain Hits The Cast (1996)
424 points, 13 voters
Studio version

first draft of my list, “coattails” was no. 1

otherworldly swirl of mystery

https://i.imgur.com/noRNq64.png
21. Starfire
Released on Secret Name (1999)
428 points, 15 voters, 1 #1 vote
Studio version

Yes, voted for these last three. The Plan and Coattails both my top ten. All fucking time. What a band.

https://i.imgur.com/FefVd4T.png
20. Fly
Released on Double Negative (2018)
433 points, 12 voters, 1 #1 vote
Music video
Live at NOX ORAE 2019

probably steve garrington's greatest moment? both that bass line & those keyboards

! Had written it off placing at this point. One of my SN that made the cut.

There's a lot of this record isn't there.

https://i.imgur.com/caWh8cK.png
19. Quorum
Released on Double Negative (2018)
438 points, 14 voters
Music video
Live at NOX ORAE 2019

remember when they premiered the first three tracks of double negative and since then we’ve been living in a fundamentally different universe

That was such a brilliant way to announce what they were doing. As a long-time fan of 'weird' Low, I was so proud and excited.

https://i.imgur.com/QQrfhf8.png
18. Dinosaur Act
Released on Things We Lost In The Fire (2001)
440 points, 14 voters, 1 #1 vote
Music video

dinosaur aaaaaaact

dinosaur aaaaaaaaact

Again. Expected this really high. Great track. This poll is weird.

This was the first of their songs where I got Neil Young vibes.

love Dinosaur Act

https://i.imgur.com/4AJOMWJ.png
17. Hey
Released on HEY WHAT (2021)
461 points, 15 voters
Studio version

heyyyyyyyyyy

this is the only song from hey what that made my ballot. rest of the album still feels too new, but “hey”… first time i heard it i thought it was the best song ever

https://i.imgur.com/BjC9Scg.png
16. Pissing
Released on The Great Destroyer (2005)
479 points, 16 voters
Studio version
Live from the Fitzgerald Theater 2018

does it make sense to stop here for today with thanksgiving and everythin? i can do another 5 if people want but i think it makes more sense to do the top 15 tomorrow?

the studio version of "pissing" is good but doesn't really compare to how immense the live versions are

Sounds good!

15 tomorrow is good!

The first three words of Starfire sound like Alan's about to sing "They call him Flipper, Flipper, Flipper the dolphin."

starfire was my #1 - too low!

Friday is also a holiday in the US but I hope we can get some people to check in for the final 15

"Coattails" is so simply constructed: a single one-note vocal line under a repeated arpeggio, bookended by a trudging riff. Amazing what they turn that into

"Fly" was my #1. Love everything about it: the mood they spin, the electronic touches, the haunting melody line and lyrics. everything I want from this band!

"Pissing" never stood out for me on Great Destroyer, maybe because it follows "Broadway". but I'm listening back now and realizing this song is way better than I gave it credit for

It's their best song about pissing!

Overall, revisiting their oeuvre in full these last weeks has really just hit home how excellent even all the tracks I didn't register over the years as "favorites" really are excellent (things like "Pissing" as an example prompting the thought).

'C'mon,' 'Invisible Way,' and 'Ones & Sixes' still don't really hit me like 10 or so other albums... But they're at worst "good" even so. Made me realize I like 'The Great Destroyer' much more than I did at the time--I think at the time I was hoping for more "weird" Low (which I got in spades on the next album), and I was disappointed by the guitar-god-ness of it, but now I hear it as a cohesive collection of really stellar songs, produced in a way I wouldn't want ever song to be, but that was well warranted.

I'd easily say they're my favorite "rock" band of my lifetime, more consistently great than Radiohead (probably the only other rock band that's kept my attention over all these years).

From #61-#36, there have been 13 songs which received a #1 vote, which appeared on 10 different releases.

Weirdly, the only record to have multiple songs receive #1 votes so far is Secret Name, which has 4 or 5 of them (depending on whether the #1 voter for "Will the Night" specifically intended the Dead Pilot version)

i know no one needs to read this in the low poll thread but i've been revisiting as well and i'm even more convinced they have nothing to offer me any more. i was into them when i was a very confused person, and i can't unhear that confusion when i listen to them now, even in the newer stuff. the tension i hear in everything they've made between darkness and light feels completely unnecessary to me now, like a massive dead end. it becomes more pronounced after 2002. it doesn't help that i generally don't find their lyrics convincing at all (they do a lot of hedging imo). the earlier stuff has an appealing innocence or open-heartedness to it that i don't hear in the later work. but anyway, that's all i can give them, even though from a distance i appreciate how gifted they are and what they were able to do with it. although even that i feel the need to qualify somehow. signed, a low fan no longer.

The tension is unnecessary in the grand scheme of things

...but essential to their music. Think of them like a really good crime novelist or something.

That tension seems essential to... the human condition?

Curious--in what ways were you confused, now enlightened, that that struggle within Low (or humanity) holds no appeal?

not a good faith question, i'm done in this thread

I was genuinely curious what made that tension hold no appeal, as it seems fundamental to life itself (as opposed to say depression or hard times, both of which I know personally). But as you wish.

I also ask having created a two-part "introduction to Low" mix some while back called 'A Light in Darkness' specifically themed around that duality and tension, which I find not only compelling but necessary. So you're wrong ti say I ask how you changed such that that part of Low and their art became superflouous at best and a cause to entirely dismiss them at worst.

I'm not a huge lyrics parser (despite of or perhaps because of having a literature degree) but it seems to me few lyricists are as forthrightly expressing their own experience and struggles as Alan and Mimi. Whether those lyrics are brilliant is an argument to be had I guess--to me they play their role in the overall music aptly and sometimes with great pithy beauty. But "hedged" (as opposed to, say, "struggling" or "searching" or rife with longing, anger, sometimes hope) seems a vast oversimplification and a mischaracterization.

"Wrong to say I ask in bad faith..." that is.

Low has some of the best lyrics-in-the-interrogative imo. At one point a few years ago I tried to make a playlist of them all (naturally titled "What Part of Me") but I'm sure I missed some.

Always Trying To Work It Out, Quorum, and Dinosaur Act were in my top ten.

Always ... is an oasis of relative calm and basic human emotion among the chaos of DN, although it's the queasy, drunk vocal effects that make the track what it is.

I meant to vote for Pissing, I discovered I'd left it off my ballot after submitting it, totally inexcusable.

It's their best song about pissing!

― cwkiii, Friday, November 26, 2021 bookmarkflaglink

I actually prefer “Plastic Cup”!

I have to be honest, I've never really gelled with Starfire.

it's not at all bad but it's pretty far from my favourite side of theirs

Coattails and The Plan are top five, often number ones for me depending on my mood. When I write that it blows my mind that people like songs like "Always" better than "The Plan," it's because it does. Almost every single person I know irl agrees with me, it's only on this board that people slobber over "Low with cool effects," which is honestly the way that I think of the later records.

The early stuff is better.

imagine writing a song about your mate who runs a pirate radio station out the back of an ambulance. it doesn't get better.

xp I kinda feel like a Grammy nomination for Best Engineered Album (Non-Classical) is a form of slobbering, so it's definitely not just this board!

table, you like techno. Dismissing something as "Low with cool effects" is kinda beneath you?

Low *is* a cool effect, and has been from the start.

Cool effects is all there is from top to bottom

Who is saying "Always" is better than "The Plan"? Certainly not the poll results. And it seems like there will be plenty of early Low in the top 15, maybe even an early fan favorite that's basically all "cool effects."

I don't see "Low with cool effects" as a negative! (and I had "Always..." higher than "The Plan" on my ballot)

I don’t expect it to place at this point, but I love the simplicity of “What Part of Me.” It’s like they dusted off an old Elvis number and made it their own.

“what part of me” is the best song ever. cut from my ballot at the last minute

all i want to say about this early v. late low business is that if these guys had made 13 albums that all sounded like “curtain” (which was my #1 album vote tho it was truly neck and neck with DN), i’d have lost interest in them years ago

Indeed!

Btw I don't know if this has been talked about but all the lockdown instagram concerts have been compiled here: http://itsfridayiminlow.com/ Pretty cool!

"all i want to say about this early v. late low business is that if these guys had made 13 albums that all sounded like “curtain” (which was my #1 album vote tho it was truly neck and neck with DN), i’d have lost interest in them years ago"

Not only that, but whichever hardcore fans were left caring after 13 albums and 25 years of the same thing would *still* be favouring the "early stuff", and stacking their ballots with songs from the first five albums, making for a fairly boring and predictable poll.

In 1969, shortly after In A Silent Way’s release, Davis was relaxing on the patio of his New York brownstone when an elderly man called the trumpeter over. “Miles Davis, I love that music of yours” he said, “but I don’t like that new shit you’re into.” Miles turned to him, and tersely replied, “Well shall I wait for you, motherfucker?”

Feels appropriate for Low.

Do strings count as "cool effects"? Because I love "Closer" and I hope to see it place in the top 15 today

In 1969, shortly after In A Silent Way’s release, Davis was relaxing on the patio of his New York brownstone when an elderly man called the trumpeter over. “Miles Davis, I love that music of yours” he said, “but I don’t like that new shit you’re into.” Miles turned to him, and tersely replied, “Well shall I wait for you, motherfucker?”

Feels appropriate for Low.

― Western® with Bacon Flavor, Friday, November 26, 2021 9:18 AM (seven minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

How about "I'm not totally impressed by a band using tools that electronic musicians and others have been using for years"

Some of the songs are great, some of them are embarrassing (imho), and framing it as some sort of Ludditism is wrong-headed.

I have a deep emotional attachment to the early records, and that bias isn't really going to be shaken by the new ones, despite my appreciation for them.

i love both eras (very early and very recent), and some of the others in between. in the same way that table has a deep emotional attachment to the old ones, a new listener could very well have an even deeper emotional attachment to the new ones, while never quite feeling what's so special about the old ones.

i don't know, funny to think to say on a board full of paid and unpaid critics, on a thread about ranking inherently subjective things in an objective fashion, but it makes no sense to me to ever try to objectively rank things that are inherently subjective. it's a fun exercise to see where it all lands though

it's like ranking colors and then disagreeing about what someone picked

I like the early colors better.

; )

To me it's a testament to the strength of the 2nd and 4th phases of Low that I love the music so much *given* I have a deep emotional attachment to the early work. Musically I love the 2nd and 4th phase as much or more, when played together with the 1st phase. I love that I feel like the band grew and changed, like a person would--like I hope I have--over all these years.

There are many acts--maybe most?--where one would say "the early stuff is better" and most people would agree.

I find it fascinating that Low is one of the rare acts beloved for a singular early vision who *hasn't* been "early stuffed" in most estimations.

xposts I can totally see someone throwing down over a recently-named Crayola or Pantone shade ranking higher than, say, yellow (Soundslike beat me to it lol).

xp

i'm not sure what your phases of low are, but are they kind of like this?

1: low born as a fully complete and perfect idea. ICLIH - Curtain.
2: Albini albums. Secret Name - Trust.
3: Fridmann albums. Great Destroyer - Drums and Guns
4: The "honestly I thought they were on their way out" era. C'mon - The Invisible Way
5: BJ albums. Ones & Sixes - HEY WHAT

that’s how i divide it up lol

though trust isn’t an albini album. it’s just kinda hanging out there in the center of things

"I'm not totally impressed by a band using tools that electronic musicians and others have been using for years"

But when they were just using guitars/drums/vocals in 1994, yeah others had been doing that for years, but they were doing something new and special with old tools. And the same can be applied to how they are using the tools employed on Double Negative and HEY WHAT.

Also, as KM said, this is all subjective!

the trust era, when they made the greatest album of all time trust

Shoot, albini didn’t produce trust?! Not sure why I always thought he did.

i forgot Fridmann did The Great Destroyer as well. Could definitely see people not liking those few because of his involvement. His name seems to spark immediate hatred for some people.

The early stuff is my favorite too. I think it could be argued that the early stuff captures the essence of Low the best. However, like a lot of indie, it's insular and staunchly limited in a way that the newer stuff isn't, which is why fans who got into them with TWLITF or later might have trouble connecting with.

Anyway, nothing about the poll results suggest to me that the early stuff is being neglected in favor of the hip new material.

I am most invested in the gambit of the "fully complete and perfect idea" that then starts to spool into abstraction and electronics - i.e. Dead Pilot and Bombscare, the remix album (the latter is not great in retrospect but just the idea of it). So I disagree w/ toneburst that they were insular/limited in that era. I liked Secret Name OK when it came out, but in retrospect it felt to me like Low's normalization into a more rock/indie idiom, as signaled by Albini then Fridmann. I usually checked out what they were doing, and sometimes found things to like, but I was no so longer invested in them. I "returned" as it were with Double Negative, though listening through to everything I did worry that it's Burton's production that I'm into, or Burton/Low. I do usually turn off when things start to sound too rock or too angelic, and prefer them when things get more fragged out.

*no longer so invested

Fridmann is so associated with pushing things into the red I can't imagine the last couple without those albums.

They code really differently to me - Fridmann is modeled on Neil Young, Burton on DAW-noise.

Not being a Frid-fan though I may have that all wrong.

I know it's all subjective, and you're right, Karl. I think it's just that many tracks from the early records literally send me into profound states of listening ecstasy and/or emotional presence. Only two or three tracks from each of the past three records have a similar effect.

This is a good summation:

1: low born as a fully complete and perfect idea. ICLIH - Curtain.
2: Albini albums. Secret Name - Trust.
3: Fridmann albums. Great Destroyer - Drums and Guns
4: The "honestly I thought they were on their way out" era. C'mon - The Invisible Way
5: BJ albums. Ones & Sixes - HEY WHAT

I am there for all of 1 and 2, elements of 3, none of 4 (excepting one or two tracks), and sizable portions of 5. I truly do think that one of the reasons why I have problems the newer records is that I'm a little unsure of their lyrics— tracks like "Always Trying to Work it Out" can be taken in a few ways, but rather than its lyrical ambiguity being its strength (like on many notable tracks from earlier records), its ambiguity feels evasive.

I think Hey What is >> Double Neg and Ones & Sixes

I truly do think that one of the reasons why I have problems the newer records is that I'm a little unsure of their lyrics— tracks like "Always Trying to Work it Out" can be taken in a few ways, but rather than its lyrical ambiguity being its strength (like on many notable tracks from earlier records), its ambiguity feels evasive.

this is interesting to me because (and yes i know this is subjective) i find '...work it out' one of the most moving songs on the album from a purely lyrics standpoint - like a lot of that album generally it mirrored a lot of what i was thinking/feeling in 2018 (malaise, frustrated connections w/others, even political anguish w/ that "everybody says the war is over" line)

haha, honestly table i think we have pretty similar takes on low, in the glass half-full / half-empty kind of way. like this:

Only two or three tracks from each of the past three records have a similar effect.

i think that's still impressive! there are very few albums that have any tracks at all that can move me in the same way, so their adding of a few more songs to their god-tier canon every couple years like a clock is pretty unusual and commendable imo.

61. Nightingale - 176 points, 5 voters
61. I Remember - 176 points, 5 voters
60. Gentle - 177 points, 6 voters
58. Spanish Translation - 186 points, 7 voters, 1 #1 vote
58. Like a Forest - 186 points, 6 voters
57. Days Like These - 202 points, 7 voters
55. John Prine - 206 points, 7 voters
55. Belarus - 206 points, 6 voters
54. Soon - 216 points, 8 voters, 1 #1 vote
53. Sleep at the Bottom - 233 points, 8 voters, 1 #1 vote
52. Dancing and Blood - 237 points, 7 voters
50. More - 238 points, 10 voters, 1 #1 vote
50. Especially Me - 238 points, 9 voters, 1 #1 vote
49. Immune - 250 points, 5 voters, 1 #1 vote
48. Anon - 257 points, 7 voters
47. Just Like Christmas - 266 points, 7 voters
46. Venus - 270 points, 11 voters
45. Always Up - 271 points, 6 voters
44. Lies - 273 points, 9 voters
43. July - 274 points, 10 voters
42. California - 276 points, 9 voters
41. The Price You Pay (It Must Be Wearing Off) - 277 points, 9 voters

40. Tempest - 278 points, 7 voters
39. Last Snowstorm of the Year - 279 points, 8 voters
37. Whitetail - 285 points, 8 voters
37. Landslide - 285 points, 11 voters
35. Weight of Water - 291 points, 9 voters, 1 #1 vote
35. No Comprende - 291 points, 11 voters
34. Broadway (So Many People) - 302 points, 7 voters
33. The Lamb - 303 points, 7 voters, 1 #1 vote
31. Will the Night - 310 points, 11 voters, 1 #1 vote
31. Violent Past - 310 points, 10 voters, 1 #1 vote
30. White Horses - 331 points, 10 voters
29. Shots & Ladders - 352 points, 14 voters
28. Breaker - 370 points, 13 voters
27. Shame - 394 points, 13 voters
26. In The Drugs - 397 points, 14 voters

25. Always Trying to Work It Out - 400 points, 12 voters
24. Monkey - 405 points, 13 voters
23. The Plan - 417 points, 12 voters
22. Coattails - 424 points, 13 voters
21. Starfire - 428 points, 15 voters, 1 #1 vote
20. Fly - 433 points, 12 voters, 1 #1 vote
19. Quorum - 438 points, 14 voters
18. Dinosaur Act - 440 points, 14 voters, 1 #1 vote
17. Hey - 461 points, 15 voters
16. Pissing - 479 points, 16 voters

https://i.imgur.com/KSvhwjC.png
15. Silver Rider
Released on the Murderer EP (2003) & The Great Destroyer (2005)
495 points, 13 voters, 3 #1 votes
56 points for the Murderer EP version
The Great Destroyer version
Murderer EP version

wow, the best song ever

amazingly i forgot to vote for it

I was a murderer version voter and I think my feelings are well documented.

i love both renditions. album version is slower iirc? it was the first i encountered and maybe that’s why i don’t prefer one

6 of my top ten haven't placed yet and I suspect two of them won't.

think i somewhat prefer the murderer version these days but either way, beautiful song

interestingly we won't see more #1 votes for a track than that

https://i.imgur.com/wVuj72c.png
14. Nothing But Heart
Released on C'mon (2011)
506 points, 13 voters
Studio version

alan's most arena-rock guitar heroics? it rules

Murderer version is sparser and more harmonically ambiguous whereas the album version has a more conventional chord structure iirc. I think they played it even slower when they did it live.

wow, figured this one would be top ten

(it was my #2)

https://i.imgur.com/f9kLt6w.png
13. Lazy
Released on I Could Live In Hope (1994)
507 points, 15 voters
Studio version

How these are not top 5?! So many of Low's best songs feel like naming and giving catharsis to microcosms of human behavioural experiences - ugly, violent, beautiful - and nothing but heart just feels to me like sarcasm and narcissism and I'm so very into it.

my first low song!!! i didn’t vote for it but it’s still incredible

LAZY!!! my early era gateway. I could live in that guitar sound.

https://i.imgur.com/Lb2CP2q.png
12. Canada
Released on Trust (2002)
522 points, 14 voters
Music video
Studio version

this is one i didn't at all expect to see this high. it's fine but there are at least two or three songs on the great destroyer that improve on its general vibe

no in fact this song is incredibly dope

i love the drums soooo much

I really love “Nothing But Heart” but that was my #30 for the longest time but it eventually got pushed out for something that needed a better chance of placing.

I was one of the #1 voters for Silver Rider. Love the sense of dread and the overwhelming la-la-las on the chorus with Mimi’s voice riding over the waves of sound.

Nothing but heart was amazing during the DN tour with the weird light show behind the stage.

I think Hey What is >> Double Neg and Ones & Sixes

― licorice in the front, pizza in the rear (Whiney G. Weingarten), Friday, November 26, 2021 1:56 PM (two hours ago) bookmarkflaglink

Seconded! Unless there’s some wonderful cabal of you out there, I think it’s safe to assume my favorite from HW won’t be placing.

Nearly half of mine placed under 25 and then it dried up, I'm now expecting my #1 not to place.

https://i.imgur.com/EBmZwDV.png
11. Lullaby
Released on I Could Live In Hope (1994)
565 points, 17 voters, 1 #1 vote
Studio version
Demo

i’m v surprised my no. 1 is gonna place in the top ten

https://i.imgur.com/C1sUAZn.png
10. Laser Beam
Released on Things We Lost In The Fire (2001)
587 points, 15 voters, 1 #1 vote
Music video

this is another i had no idea would be such a favourite at all

it’s going to be weird if the better Mimi-led song from that album doesn’t place.

More than any other song, Laser Beam made me a Low fan for life, no joke. I had ever heard an "indie" (for lack of a better word) song do so much with so little.

this is another i had no idea would be such a favourite at all

― ufo, Friday, November 26, 2021 2:27 PM (eight minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

it’s going to be weird if the better Mimi-led song from that album doesn’t place.

― Western® with Bacon Flavor, Friday, November 26, 2021 2:29 PM (six minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

wtf y’all

no more singular unit of beauty in their catalog than

“i need your grace”

it's good, just never felt like a standout to me? "slide"'s sibling

how dare you undervalue this perfect jewel of a song

j/k

https://i.imgur.com/b7vnyd6.png
9. Violence
Released on Long Division (1995)
614 points, 17 voters, 2 #1 votes
Studio version

Hell yes to Laser Beam in the top 10.

I think about 'Violence' whenever I lend someone a book.

Ah there it is, phew! The unassailable distillation of what makes Low - perfect economical sound, those themes of violence, trust - feels like the grandfather of everything ever they've done, in a way. Never any question.

https://i.imgur.com/41Qfodd.png
8. In Metal
Released on Things We Lost In The Fire (2001)
699 points, 18 voters, 3 #1 votes
Music video

Amazing song.

I know it's a bulb, but I always think the cover of Long Division is a bottle nipple.

seems like earlier low is gonna rule the top ten huh

https://i.imgur.com/HHHQSpS.png
7. Over the Ocean
Released on The Curtain Hits The Cast (1996)
728 points, 20 voters, 1 #1 vote
Music video

absolutely gorgeous

also a little structurally odd when you pay attention

it’s going to be weird if the better Mimi-led song from that album doesn’t place.

― Western® with Bacon Flavor, Friday, November 26, 2021 4:29 PM (forty-two minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

Xxxxp there it is!

“In Metal” for the ILX parenting crew

https://i.imgur.com/AgluTxO.png
6. (That's How You Sing) Amazing Grace
Released on Trust (2002)
782 points, 21 voters, 1 #1 vote
Studio version

just checking in on the rollout for a minute! every single song, so good, for so long.

https://i.imgur.com/ResXKnk.png
5. Sunflower
Released on Things We Lost In The Fire (2001)
789 points, 23 voters, 1 #1 vote
Music video

quite surprised about number six. laser beam was my number one. i know what my odds are for number one...!

hm maybe my no. 1 didn’t make it. do you all like “tonight” as much as i do or no

I think it was on the other thread but I definitely had no idea “amazing grace” was liked so well. In the bottom half of their admittedly great track record of album openers (Words, Sunflower, Monkey, White Horses, etc.)

trust has some good tunes but i feel like the production is so... distant and indirect for the most part

hm, i feel exactly the opposite

kinda like that time i saw them in halifax minister for a christmas show but i was drunk off two miniature bottles of red wine from the train ride and stood behind a pillar at the back for the whole show

it and c’mon are my favorite (acoustic, non-blown out) low production jobs

xp

https://i.imgur.com/k4Bknxg.png
4. Words
Released on I Could Live In Hope (1994)
859 points, 20 voters, 1 #1 vote
Music video

oooooo damn

<3 “words”, it just…shimmers

Hmmm... Are we in for a Mimi surprise?

nah it'll be a certain song from drums and guns (:

how does almost everything on trust place but not “tonight” i’m devastating and won’t be taking any calls thank you

devastated* but i’m also devastating

That one and the other one taken as a given, but i'm scratching my head at the 3rd one.

deaf/murderer/waltz in some order?

There are 5 songs in my personal top 10 that have not shown up yet.

https://i.imgur.com/ZeqZORZ.png
3. Two-Step
Released on Secret Name (1999)
922 points, 24 voters, 2 #1 votes
Studio version

"Words" is probably my favorite Low song but that line "man in the box wants to burn my soul" is a little rough lol

televangelism

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nj9pVoAoUEg

i knew that would be number 1

Ah yeah not such a surprise after all then, absolutely deserved.

I’d honestly written this song off for placing once the 20 and under results started showing. Really really great to see it’s placement here.

https://i.imgur.com/wfwvABt.png
2. Do You Know How To Waltz?
Released on The Curtain Hits The Cast (1996)
1002 points, 25 voters, 1 #1 vote
60 points & 1 #1 vote for the Rock the Garden 2013 live version
Studio version
Live at Rock the Garden 2013

https://i.imgur.com/dM2tJ9o.png
1. Murderer
Released on the Murderer EP (2003) & Drums and Guns (2007)
1156 points, 27 voters, 2 #1 votes
114 points, 3 voters for the Murderer EP version
Drums and Guns version
Murderer EP version
Live at NRMAL 2016

i recommend everyone itt fall in love with “tonight” and never look back

called it

wait y’all knew murderer would be no. 1? i assumed waltz

Wow. I know “Waltz” is beloved but I’d honestly like to hear from others about giving “Murderer” such high marks.

XP completely shocked. It was my #1 and had no thought it was in that circle of reverence. I knew the EP version was preferred by the heads but that was it.

there's something about the mellotron(?) & bass progression & the opening lines that makes it so definitive, final, resolute. it feels like the complete epitome, like the last song they could have ever written. they could have stopped there and it would have been perfect, but im so glad they didnt.

2-Step was my #1

Not surprised nor mad at the top 3.

Biggest shock for me is that “Stars Gone Out” didn’t place.

oh totally, that was my #2

Two Step is incredible. Never been much of a fan of Do You Know. I have no opinion of Murderer really, I mean it's fine but.

Phh. My number one didn't even place.

I'm also pretty shocked that "Murderer" took it, especially over the towering "Waltz". No complaints though, both would be worthy winners

Anyone think "Over the Ocean" was inspired by "Purple Rain"? Very similar chords, sparse guitar + drums, water theme?? I've had association between those songs since I heard them

Thanks for running the poll ufo!

This was the performance that pushed me from casual to LOWRULES

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tSbR0_gdc60

i was one of the #1 votes for "murderer" (specifically the EP version) - i love the way the anger and disillusionment reaches this intense boiling point - AND I'VE READ YOUR BOOKS! - and then slowly ebbs right when you think it's going to explode. "waltz" was in my top ten because it undeniably rules but it also feels like something i can only listen to in a particular state of mind

definitely assumed either "when i go deaf" or "point of disgust" was going to show up here at some point. what a wild poll! thanks for running it ufo

thank you for participating, everyone

here's the full results:

1. Murderer - 1156 points, 27 voters, 2 #1 votes
2. Do You Know How To Waltz? - 1002 points, 25 voters, 1 #1 vote
3. Two-Step - 922 points, 24 voters, 2 #1 votes
4. Words - 859 points, 20 voters, 1 #1 vote
5. Sunflower - 789 points, 23 voters, 1 #1 vote
6. (That's How You Sing) Amazing Grace - 782 points, 21 voters, 1 #1 vote
7. Over the Ocean - 728 points, 20 voters, 1 #1 vote
8. In Metal - 699 points, 18 voters, 3 #1 votes
9. Violence - 614 points, 17 voters, 2 #1 votes
10. Laser Beam - 587 points, 15 voters, 1 #1 vote
11. Lullaby - 565 points, 17 voters, 1 #1 vote
12. Canada - 522 points, 14 voters
13. Lazy - 507 points, 15 voters
14. Nothing But Heart - 506 points, 13 voters
15. Silver Rider - 495 points, 13 voters, 3 #1 votes
16. Pissing - 479 points, 16 voters
17. Hey - 461 points, 15 voters
18. Dinosaur Act - 440 points, 14 voters, 1 #1 vote
19. Quorum - 438 points, 14 voters
20. Fly - 433 points, 12 voters, 1 #1 vote
21. Starfire - 428 points, 15 voters, 1 #1 vote
22. Coattails - 424 points, 13 voters
23. The Plan - 417 points, 12 voters
24. Monkey - 405 points, 13 voters
25. Always Trying to Work It Out - 400 points, 12 voters
26. In The Drugs - 397 points, 14 voters
27. Shame - 394 points, 13 voters
28. Breaker - 370 points, 13 voters
29. Shots & Ladders - 352 points, 14 voters
30. White Horses - 331 points, 10 voters
31. Violent Past - 310 points, 10 voters, 1 #1 vote
31. Will the Night - 310 points, 11 voters, 1 #1 vote
33. The Lamb - 303 points, 7 voters, 1 #1 vote
34. Broadway (So Many People) - 302 points, 7 voters
35. Weight of Water - 291 points, 9 voters, 1 #1 vote
35. No Comprende - 291 points, 11 voters
37. Whitetail - 285 points, 8 voters
37. Landslide - 285 points, 11 voters
39. Last Snowstorm of the Year - 279 points, 8 voters
40. Tempest - 278 points, 7 voters
41. The Price You Pay (It Must Be Wearing Off) - 277 points, 9 voters
42. California - 276 points, 9 voters
43. July - 274 points, 10 voters
44. Lies - 273 points, 9 voters
45. Always Up - 271 points, 6 voters
46. Venus - 270 points, 11 voters
47. Just Like Christmas - 266 points, 7 voters
48. Anon - 257 points, 7 voters
49. Immune - 250 points, 5 voters, 1 #1 vote
50. Especially Me - 238 points, 9 voters, 1 #1 vote
50. More - 238 points, 10 voters, 1 #1 vote
52. Dancing and Blood - 237 points, 7 voters
53. Sleep at the Bottom - 233 points, 8 voters, 1 #1 vote
54. Soon - 216 points, 8 voters, 1 #1 vote
55. Belarus - 206 points, 6 voters
55. John Prine - 206 points, 7 voters
57. Days Like These - 202 points, 7 voters
58. Like a Forest - 186 points, 6 voters
58. Spanish Translation - 186 points, 7 voters, 1 #1 vote
60. Gentle - 177 points, 6 voters
61. I Remember - 176 points, 5 voters
61. Nightingale - 176 points, 5 voters
63. When I Go Deaf - 168 points, 7 voters
64. Don't Understand - 166 points, 8 voters
65. Take Your Time - 163 points, 5 voters
65. Point of Disgust - 163 points, 7 voters
67. Because You Stood Still - 162 points, 4 voters
67. Closer - 162 points, 4 voters
69. You See Everything - 158 points, 6 voters
70. Try To Sleep - 152 points, 5 voters
71. La La La Song - 151 points, 5 voters
72. Throw Out The Line - 143 points, 5 voters
72. Stars Gone Out - 143 points, 4 voters
74. Everybody's Song - 140 points, 4 voters
75. Time is the Diamond - 136 points, 6 voters
76. Medicine Magazines - 135 points, 5 voters
77. Congregation - 130 points, 5 voters
78. Witches - 128 points, 5 voters
78. Down - 128 points, 5 voters
80. Drag - 127 points, 5 voters
81. Little Argument With Myself - 126 points, 5 voters
81. Just Make It Stop - 126 points, 5 voters
83. Condescend - 124 points, 5 voters, 1 #1 vote
83. Hatchet - 124 points, 4 voters
85. Laugh - 119 points, 4 voters
86. Tonight - 118 points, 3 voters, 1 #1 vote
86. Long Way Around The Sea - 118 points, 3 voters
88. All Night - 116 points, 5 voters
88. Cut - 116 points, 4 voters
88. Disappearing - 116 points, 3 voters
91. Whore - 114 points, 3 voters
92. If You Were Born Today (Song for Little Baby Jesus) - 110 points, 3 voters
92. Down by the River - 110 points, 3 voters
94. So Easy (So Far) - 106 points, 3 voters
94. Don't Carry It All - 106 points, 2 voters
96. Stay - 101 points, 4 voters
97. Rome (Always In The Dark) - 100 points, 3 voters
98. Swingin' - 98 points, 4 voters
98. Poor Sucker - 98 points, 3 voters
100. Below & Above - 94 points, 5 voters
101. Bombscare - 90 points, 2 voters
102. In Silence - 86 points, 3 voters
103. Born by the Wires - 82 points, 3 voters
103. Hand So Small - 82 points, 2 voters
105. Dancing and Fire - 81 points, 4 voters
105. On the Edge of - 81 points, 4 voters
107. Disarray - 78 points, 4 voters
108. Joan of Arc - 76 points, 3 voters
109. Don't Walk Away - 74 points, 2 voters
110. Embrace - 73 points, 2 voters
111. What Part Of Me - 72 points, 5 voters
112. The Innocents - 70 points, 4 voters
113. Dragonfly - 68 points, 4 voters
114. Standby - 67 points, 3 voters
115. Fear - 64 points, 2 voters
115. Be There - 64 points, 3 voters
115. Plastic Cup - 64 points, 5 voters
118. Just Stand Back - 62 points, 3 voters
119. Mom Says - 59 points, 2 voters
120. Cue the Strings - 58 points, 2 voters
120. Caroline - 58 points, 2 voters
120. So Blue - 58 points, 2 voters
123. Death of a Salesman - 56 points, 2 voters
123. DJ - 56 points, 3 voters
125. Candy Girl - 54 points, 2 voters
125. Dark - 54 points, 2 voters
127. Streetlight - 48 points, 1 voter
127. Slide - 48 points, 1 voter
129. From Your Place on Sunset - 47 points, 2 voters
130. Always Fade - 46 points, 3 voters
130. Untitled 4 - 46 points, 1 voter
130. Transmission - 46 points, 3 voters
133. Those Girls (Song For Nico) - 44 points, 1 voter
134. On My Own - 42 points, 3 voters
134. David & Jude - 42 points, 1 voter
136. Tomorrow One - 40 points, 3 voters
137. Way Behind - 38 points, 1 voter
137. Missouri - 38 points, 2 voters
139. Old Man Song - 36 points, 1 voter
139. One Special Gift - 36 points, 1 voter
139. I Started A Joke - 36 points, 2 voters
139. When You Walked - 36 points, 1 voter
139. Untitled 1 - 36 points, 1 voter
144. Amethyst - 32 points, 1 voter
145. Turn - 31 points, 1 voter
145. Walk You Out - 31 points, 1 voter
145. Lust - 31 points, 1 voter
145. Turning Over - 31 points, 1 voter
149. Hey Chicago - 30 points, 1 voter
150. Alone - 28 points, 2 voters
150. Rope - 28 points, 1 voter
150. Walk Into the Sea - 28 points, 2 voters
150. Landlord - 28 points, 1 voter
154. Sea - 26 points, 1 voter
155. Bright - 24 points, 1 voter
155. Sunshine - 24 points, 1 voter
157. Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me - 20 points, 1 voter
157. Blue-Eyed Devil - 20 points, 1 voter
159. Lion/Lamb - 18 points, 1 voter
159. Peanut Butter Toast and American Bandstand - 18 points, 2 voters
159. Home - 18 points, 2 voters
162. I Can Wait - 16 points, 1 voter
162. Kind of Girl - 16 points, 2 voters
162. Overhead - 16 points, 1 voter
165. Days of… - 14 points, 1 voter
166. Majesty/Magic - 12 points, 1 voter
166. No Need - 12 points, 1 voter
168. Prisoner - 8 points, 1 voter
168. Something's Turning Over - 8 points, 1 voter
170. I Hear... Goodnight - 6 points, 1 voter
170. Stay (Rihanna cover) - 6 points, 1 voter
172. Take - 4 points, 1 voter
172. Taking Down The Tree - 4 points, 1 voter
172. Tear Down - 4 points, 1 voter
175. Back Home Again - 2 points, 1 voter

SILVER RIDER WAY TOO LOW! it was my #1. my favorite version of the song is basically "whenever i see them play it live" because on a good night, it's the most transcendent song humans have ever crafted

Love for whoever voted “Condescend” #1 and “Don’t Carry It All” as highly as I did

Thank you for running this, ufo!!

murderer is a worthy #1, i believe it was my #3. "i've seen you pound your first into the earth" is probably the most striking imagery i've ever heard in music

btw thanks for running the poll ufo!

my ballot

Tonight
Coattails
Landslide
Do You Know How to Waltz?
Murderer
Tempest
Laser Beam
Stay
Take Your Time
The Plan
Hey
July
Old Man Song
Dancing and Blood
So Blue
Don't Understand
Laugh
DJ
Spanish Translation
Always Fade
California
Congregation
Will the Night
Time is the Diamond
Lies
Try to Sleep
Disarray
Just Stand Back
Below & Above
No Comprende

my songs ballot

1. Murderer (EP version)
2. Nothing But Heart
3. Laser Beam
4. Words
5. (That's How You Sing) Amazing Grace
6. Dancing and Blood
7. Do You Know How to Waltz?
8. The Plan
9. Breaker
10. Coattails
11. Silver Rider
12. Point of Disgust
13. In Metal
14. Quorum
15. Witches
16. Tomorrow One
17. Lazy
18. Spanish Translation
19. Shame
20. John Prine
21. Don't Understand
22. Over the Ocean
23. Shots and Ladders
24. When I Go Deaf
25. Soon
26. Hey
27. Whitetail
28. Starfire
29. Tear Down
30. Pissing

I'm the number one voter for Condescend. I didn't do a covers poll, so..

Condescend
Nothing But Heart
Down By The River
Broadway (So Many People)
Just Like Christmas
Dinosaur Act
Over The Ocean
Especially Me
If You Were Born Today
The Plan
Coattails
You See Everything
Two Step
Laser Beam
Will The Night (Dead Pilot version)
Closer
Weight Of Water
In The Drugs
Sunflower
Monkey
Lazy
Words
Silver Rider
In Metal
Whitetail
Shots & Ladders
July
Starfire
Point Of Disgust
Venus

Great poll. Thanks to ufo for running it and to everyone for all the great discussion.

Silver Rider
In Metal
Words
Venus
Breaker
Amazing Grace
Sunflower
Weight for Water
Laser Beam
Canada
Everybody's Song
Dinosaur Act
Last Snowstorm of the Year
Congregation
Nothing But Heart
Drag
Below & Above
Shame
Starfire
2-Step
Murderer
Lullaby
Especially Me
Medicine Magazines
La La Song
Take Your Time
In Silence
Monkey
Cue the Strings
Dragonfly

Unsurprising ballot, unranked:

Throw Out the Line

Turn

Stay

Two-Step

Weight of Water

Whitetail

Medicine Magazines

Laser Beam

Embrace

(That's How You Sing) Amazing Grace

In the Drugs

Last Snowstorm of the Year

La La La Song

Point of Disgust

Shots & Ladders

Anon

The Plan

Over the Ocean

Mom Says

Coattails

Standby

Laugh

Lust

Stars Gone Out

Do You Know How to Waltz?

Murderer

Words

Lazy

Lullaby

Drag

Thanks ufo! And thanks to all of you for putting up with me being annoying for days.

Fascinating that Double Negative took the album poll, yet its highest placing in tracks was #19?? Feel like that's gotta be unprecedented among these artist polls

xp I’ve liked reading your take on Low, table!

been distracted by family events the last few days but have enjoyed this thread. thanks ufo

curious how common it is for other artist polls to have that many different songs of theirs get #1 votes - seemed like there were a lot for this one?

Fascinating that Double Negative took the album poll, yet its highest placing in tracks was #19?? Feel like that's gotta be unprecedented among these artist polls

yeah this was something that stood out to me as quite unusual, but i think it lines up with a lot of people mentioning that they loved double negative but weren't finding it easy to separate out individual tracks from it

This band.

Silver Rider
Monkey
Witches
(That’s How You Sing) Amazing Grace
Always Trying to Work It Out
Don’t Walk Away
The Lamb
Broadway (So Many People)
Disappearing
California
Landslide

Candy Girl
Two-Step
Canada
No Comprende
Pissing
Time Is the Diamond
On My Own
Weight of Water
Shots and Ladders
Do You Know How to Waltz
Quorum
Hey
Breaker
Majesty/Magic
Violence
Dinosaur Act
Just Stand Back
Little Argument with Myself
Days Like These

Good lookin out, table

Two-Step
Whitetail
Nothing But Heart
Cue the Strings
Monkey
Violence
Time Is The Diamond
Canada
Whore
Throw Out the Line
Plastic Cup
Sunflower
Missouri
Dinosaur Act
Standby
(That's How You Sing) Amazing Grace
Especially Me
So Blue
Hatchet
Just Like Christmas
Lullaby
Coattails
Don't Understand
On My Own
Shame
Just Make It Stop
White Horses
More
Transmission
I Started a Joke

Starfire
Words
The Lamb
In Metal
(That's How You Sing) Amazing Grace
2-Step
Pissing
Poor Sucker
The Price You Pay (It Must Be Wearing Off)
Whore
Do You Know How to Waltz
Murderer
Don't Understand
Sunflower
Dancing and Blood
Over the Ocean
Always Trying to Work it Out
Coattails
Condescend
Violent Past
Anon
Throw Out the Line
Born By the Wires
Lazy
When I Go Deaf
Hey
Spanish Translation
More
In the Drugs
Dinosaur Act

I thought "whore" might be top-ten material. the lyrics, i don't know. i don't listen to them. everything else about it is stunning.

great poll, thanks so much for running it ufo!!

The only rock bands I want to listen to these days are Low and Ween, idk what that says about me

what do you have against the foo fighters?

I thought "whore" might be top-ten material. the lyrics, i don't know. i don't listen to them. everything else about it is stunning.

yeah it ended up being my favourite from things we lost in the fire. the lyrics are a pretty awkward biblical reference which is a shame compared to how good the rest of it is

The Lamb
Two-Step
Monkey
Broadway (So Many People)
I Remember
Fly
Over the Ocean
Canada
Immune
Lullaby
Shame
Do You Know How to Waltz?
Everybody's Song
Lazy
Because You Stood Still
Nightingale
Long Way Around the Sea
(That's How You Sing) Amazing Grace
Words
The Innocents
Medicine Magazines
Pissing
Dancing and Fire
In Metal
Belarus
Plastic Cup
Sleep at the Bottom
Sunflower
Standby
Shots & Ladders 2 – I was apparently the only vote for this version, and contributed only 2 points vs. the 350 points that the Trust version received.

things we lost in the fire was my first low. i was 20 at the time (2003) and met this wonderful woman who would play it all the time. i hope this isn't tmi, but i really liked her and for a while we were a couple and would sleep in the same bed. we never made love (TMI), which was a smart move on her part, because she knew i was just a young whatever and not a good idea for anyone who was taking things seriously. i would always be waiting for the right time, and who knows what she was thinking, and then at some point it would be things we lost in the fire time, and it was so warm and intense. Sunflower wowed me of course, first time, but later it was Whore and In Metal and....every single other song...that would knock me out. it was really intense laying there in that bad, on the edge of some sort of horny mistake, not making it, listening to this music, wine drunk. i can never forget it

Thanks UFO!

Fascinating results I'll spend more time parsing--but I feel like the take-away is basically that Low may be even more amazing than we often remember. They're so consistently great that perhaps sometimes we become innured to really seeing it.

My tracks:

01. “Will The Night (Secret Name, 1999)
02. “So Easy (So Far)” (Bombscare EP, 2000)
03. “Belarus” (Drums & Guns, 2007)
04. “Fly” (Double Negative, 2018)
05. “Little Argument With Myself” (Trust, 2002)
06. “Because You Stood Still” (Last Night I Dreamt EP, 2001)
07. “Soon” (Secret Name, 1999)
08. “Breaker” (Drums & Guns, 2007)
09. “Hand So Small” (Bombscare EP, 2000)
10. “Down By The River” (In the Fishtank EP, 2001)
11. “The Price You Pay (It Must Be Wearing Off)” (Hey What, 2021)
12. “Do You Know How To Waltz?” (The Curtain Hits The Cast, 1996)
13. “Two-Step” (Secret Name, 1999)
14. “Don’t Understand” (Secret Name, 1999)
15. “Bombscare” (Bombscare EP, 2000)
16. “Hey” (Hey What, 2021)
17. “Landlord” (Songs For A Dead Pilot EP, 1997)
18. “John Prine” (Trust, 2002)
19. “Sunshine” (I Could Live In Hope, 1994)
20. “Always Fade” (Drums & Guns, 2007)
21. “Disarray” (Double Negative, 2018)
22. “Dragonfly” (Drums & Guns, 2007)
23. “The Plan” (The Curtain Hits the Cast, 1996)
24. “On The Edge Of” (The Great Destroyer, 2005)
25. “Always Trying to Work It Out” (Double Negative, 2018)
26. “Murderer” (Drums & Guns, 2007)
27. “Drag” (I Could Live In Hope, 1994)
28. “Words” (I Could Live In Hope, 1994)
29. “Poor Sucker” (Double Negative, 2018)
30. “Laser Beam” (Things We Lost in the Fire, 2001)

And releases:

01. Drums & Guns (2007)
02. Double Negative (2018)
03. Secret Name (1999)
04. Bombscare EP (2000)
05. Trust (2002)
06. The Curtain Hits the Cast (1996)
07. I Could Live in Hope (1994)
08. Hey What (2021)
09. The Great Destroyer (2005)
10. Things We Lost In the Fire (2001)

I'll continue to push for more folks to hear the 'Bombscare' EP, which more and more feels like the secret fulcrum of their oeuvre...

Thanks for sharing that, Karl. Long Division was my first, but TWLITF was the one that really hooked me.

My take on the last two is that Double Negative is the better album length statement, Hey What has higher highs but a couple duds. Between the lyrics and the vocal I don't like "Days Like These" at all.

Songs

More
Words
Belarus
Quorum
Shame
Lazy
Hey
Pissing
Witches
Violence
Two-Step
Sunflower
Murderer
Disarray
Lullaby
Soon
Anon
Fear
Lies
Cut
Stay
Drag
Take
Gentle
I Remember
So Easy (So Far)
Born by the Wires
Breaker (Dub Plate)
Do You Know How to Waltz?
Venus (Time Stereo Dub Mix)

Albums

I Could Live in Hope
Double Negative
Long Division
Ones and Sixes
Hey What
The Curtain Hits the Cast
Songs for a Dead Dreamer
Drums and Guns
Secret Name

*Songs for a Dead Pilot 8/

Tracks

1. Murderer
2. Lazy
3. Don’t Carry It All
4. When I Go Deaf
5. All Night
6. Words
7. Do You Know How to Waltz
8. Violent Past
9. Lullaby
10. In Metal
11. Take Your Time
12. Nightingale
13. White Horses
14. Condescend
15. Pissing
16. Rome (Always in the Dark)
17. Starfire
18. Dancing and Blood
19. Sunflower
20. Canada
21. More
22. Breaker
23. The Price You Pay (It Must Be Wearing Off)
24. Venus
25. 2-Step
26. Landslide
27. John Prine
28. What Part of Me
29. Like a Forest
30. In the Drugs

Albums

1. Drums and Guns
2. Hey What
3. I Could Live in Hope
4. Things We Lost in the Fire
5. The Curtain Hits the Cast
6. The Great Destroyer
7. Double Negative
8. Ones and Sixes
9. In a Fishtank
10. Trust

TWLITF was my gateway years back. Someone put it on the morning after a night of heavy partying and the mood of “Sunflower” and on just clicked.

"sunflower" is the ultimate low gateway song imo

it's imo because it was my gateway i guess

i'm surprised that When I Go Deaf didn't place

this poll has prompted me to reassess the great destroyer. it was always one of my least favorite of theirs, but after giving it 10 or so years since the last listen, i can really recognize several fantastic songs on it.

Yeah, that one screams big crowd singalong when played live

“All Night” became my new favorite Mimi song. She’s holding everything together for around 4 minutes before it sounds like she’s getting pulled into a telephone.

Pardon the interruption, but the gorgeous David Gilmour song "The Blue" sounds a lot like Low "Shame," and the first word in the song is "shamelessly."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B1kJfdfrzIM

Most of them placed but I'm still shocked at Caroline. Seriously people ?

Spanish Translation
Lazy
Caroline
The Lamb
Anon
Murderer
That’s How you sing Amazing Grace
Gentle
Lies
Shame
Always Trying to Work it Out
Words
White Horses
Congregation
Especially Me
Quorum
Lullaby
Weight of Water
Sunflower
July
Dancing and Blood
Fly
Dinosaur Act
Monkey
The Innocents
The Plan
No Comprende
Shots & Ladders
Down
Silver Rider

Most of these placed but more love for Bombscare and Tonight please. Trust is the favourite album and Tonight is crucial flickering warmth relative to the general chillier nocturnal vibe.

Immune
Bombscare
Murderer
California
White Horses
Violent Past
Shots & Ladders
No Comprende
Fly
More
Tonight
Hand So Small
Canada
Monkey
Belarus
Quorum
Soon
Pissing
Sunflower
Just Like Christmas
Time is the Diamond
Sleep at the Bottom
Do You Know How to Waltz?
Days of…
July
Point of Disgust
Violence
Breaker
In the Drugs
Condescend