This is a thread for spreading musical understanding, open stuff

- the new one by Doves then. And 'The Holy Bible' by the Manic Stret Preachers.-- jack frobisher
- brown eyed girl" by van morrison -- michael w
- Radar Brothers — And the Surrounding Mountains -- christoff
- Meatloaf - "Bat Out of Hell" -- Lord Custos Alpha
- "The Teaches of Peaches" Peaches -- Dom Passantino
- The Velvet Underground- "Squeeze" -- brg30
- Basement Jaxx - Rooty (I do "get" the single though). -- Dave Beckhouse
- The Verve - Urban Hymns -- Mr Swygart
- Miss Kittin and The Hacker. -- Chupa-Cabras
- Bruce Springsteen, The Rising -- M Matos
- Audio Bullyz - 'Real Life' -- Mr Swygart
- Absurd's "Facta Luquuntur" -- Siegbran Hetteson
- Xinlisupreme "All You Need Is Love Was Not True" -- Graham
- Bush Tetras-"Too Many Creeps" -- Arthur
- Gavin Bryars - Jesus' Blood Never Failed Me Yet -- sundar subramanian
- anything by Interpol -- coelcanth
- Spin Doctor - Pocket full of Kryptonite -- Chris V.
- Radiohead - OK Computer. -- alex in mainhattan
- Kick out the jams- MC5 -- Julio Desouza
- Jesus & Mary Chain - Darklands -- sundar subramanian
- Anything by the Sundays. -- d.r.
- Source Tags and Codes -- Brian Mowrey
- Anything by Diana Krall or the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion. -- Underclocked

The Who - Quadrophrenia

Firstly, I've never met anyone who'se owned a copy and the only people I know who've heard it, heard my copy, so for a start I think it gets slagged off as a kneejerk reaction.

Secondly if you listen expecting White Light or Heroin or such like of course you'll be disappointed, what the album is is a great early 70's pop/rock album with a strong Lou Reed influence in the song writign department. Its got strong melodies, cathcy hooks and some amusignly wacky arrangements. Bascially it's a bad Velvet Underground album but a great Doug Yule album and better than some of the solo albums by other alumnus of the VU.

If it had actually been a Doug Yule solo album it'd be a lost classic of the easrly 70's to rank alongside Big Star or Starry Eyed & Laughing.

I'm not very good at explaining why I like a piece of music, and the simpler it is, the less there is to say about it, but here's my try. I believe that the point at which Brayr's instrumental passage comes in while the loop of the singer is being played changes slightly, which lends some interest to the piece for people like me who have listened to excessive amounts of minimalist music. I like the way the singer breaks the phrase down into very discrete parts: "Jesus' blood never failed me/[pause--a millisecond 'too long'] yet." On the other hand, I have sometimes been baffled as to why I like this recording, but I do.

Destroy: the version Gavin Bryars did with Tom Waits added to the ending. (I think Bryars has since expressed regret about that.)

“Kick Out the Jams” to me is a rock and roll missing link artifact. It is American Maximum R&B, the beginnings of heavy metal with the thrust of what would become punk with segments of feedback guitar freakery inspired by Sun Ra’s cosmic music. The record seems to me to sound like a blend of sweat, weed and burning gasoline.

The music isn’t dissimilar to either 70s Ted Nugent or current hipster neo- garage acts, with chugging hard rock and roll with some interesting two guitar harmony interplay. I particularly like how Sonic Smith & Wayne Kramer’s guitars dual it out hammering the riff through out “Rocket Reducer No. 62” while the drums wail around the music not unlike Keith Moon.

The over the top proclamations between songs of Brother J.C. and Rob Tyner railing against the man and rally cries to come together are definitely of their time, but to me are cool funky artifacts of that time not unlike some of the sly street talk of mid 70s blaxploitation influenced R&B and funk.

If it all comes out too over the top or too brash, don’t worry, it is obvious that many rock and roll fans didn’t get it at the time either. “Kick Out the Jams” doesn’t have the nihilistic streak of The Stooges, doesn’t sound as far freaked out today (as many guitar bands have taken the freak to further beyond solar systems) and doesn’t have the still provocative lyrics of the Velvets; so perhaps to many listeners is might sound a bit tame or lunkheaded, considering the fury that others have created in its wake. I think it rocks.

Imagine they're all singles, it's easy if you try.

(I know this is no good as an explanation of Rooty's greatness btw, might well try later).

(ha ha)

One reason I like "Romeo" on Rooty, even though I don't like most house, is that there are very upfront counter-rhythms going on in the song.

"No Technotronic below us. Above us only sky."

OK then, so it's not as suicidal as their debut, and it's not as lyrically hung up on "Your record label did me out of money" as their second album, but then that can only be a good thing - the songs seem to be about family and finding happiness. This third Radar Brothers adds an almost Spector-esque grandeur to their simple three chord slow motion songs, with peculiar time changes and the occasional sleighbell and synth string part filling in the corners of the songs where previously there would be empty space. It's not an album you can take individual songs from, it works best as a whole entity. It's the kind of record you can have in the background for a week and it will seep into your system when you least expect it - those tunes get under your skin in the nicest way. Yes, it's an acquired taste, but it suits me. Probably one of my albums of the year, and not one I'm sick of yet (unlike "YHF").

Initially, i found the album very listenable; then it just fell out, and failed to offer any real substance. And now, it just feels boring and predictable.

I like you case for music that slowly creeps under your skin, and g. knows i've experienced a number of albums that evolved as such -- thing is, initial listens are usually accompanied with distaste or indifference until it finally "hits ya". A most recent example would be Summer Hymns' Voice Brother & Sister which took at least a dozen run-throughs to dig.

Thanks for the op though

¥

The Holy Bible: The words are my brain a few years ago, and sometimes now, set to the tightest fucking metal possible. It's self- and society-loathing without sounding whiny; James Bradfield can barely get his mouth around the words he's meant to say half the time. I wouldn't think anyone would have to hear anything beyond the guitar solo on "Faster" to get it, but you could try listening to "Yes" if the solo isn't explanatory enough.

Having said that, "Paranoid Android" is a damn good song.

The album itself doesn't even really exist in the critical sphere anymore, and has been replaced by two strange doppelgängers, one so revered it's untouchable, the other so execrable that it causes disease, and neither one bears much resemblance to the album.