Would love to hear Dave Baerwald's picks: -- here are mine
Best albums:
DOVES -- 'Lost Souls'
MARILLION -- 'Anoraknophobia'
NEIL FINN -- 'One Nil'
ELBOW -- Asleep in the Back
BJORK -- 'Vespertine'
RADIOHEAD -- 'Amnesiac'
Ok, I suppose DOVES was released late last year, but I only heard them in January. This album is astonishing -- every track. Great sense of melody, atmosphere and dynamics. The sound of what they do with layers of electric and acoustic guitars are amazing.
MARILLION are a band that reach musical and emotional places most bands don't know exist. And they're ever evolving -- no album is the same. Their secret weapon is singer Steve Hogarth -- pure emotion. He's in the same league as Jeff Buckley, Robert Plant, Peter Gabriel but doesn't sound like any of them. Anoraknophobia isn't dark, like previous records (check out the band's 'Afraid of Sunlight' album from 1995). This album is a musically inventive delight. The brooding 11 minute track 'This Is the 21st Century' is worth the purchase alone.
NEIL FINN: Never thought he'd better his superb first solo album, 'Try Whistling This,' but he has. There is a song called "The Rest of the Day off," which is truly sublime -- it's a song that lyrically and melodically evokes a beautiful sunny afternoon. And then the song suddenly transitions straight into the next track "Hole in the Ice" so that it is really an extension of the previous song. The gear shift (with some very John Bonham-esque drumming) with chorus so gorgeous that it defies description. That's my summer song, right there.
Strange that America suddenly lost interest in Crowded House after their first two albums, just as they were starting to produce their best work. I think Neill Finn is unquestionably one of the most gifted melodicists writing songs today.
ELBOW -- 'Newborn' is a contender for song of the year. It starts off prettily enough and then the band and singer start turning the screws and take this song in an ever more emotionally intense direction. By the time the singer, who has a voice that reminds me of Paul Buchanan and Peter Gabriel, sings, 'bring your lips to my eyes/taste my tears on your soul...' you'll be in tears. I was. Anyone who likes the sonic majesty of the Doves will like this.
BJORK: She's special with a musical imagination and vision many female singers sorely lack. What this album lacks is the variety of colors and styles of "Debut" or "Post" (the latter album maybe lacked focus because of that) so I sort of miss that. But "Vespertine" wants to keep you locked into one overall mood -- I wish she'd used a greater variety of instrumentation because there are choirs and harps on just about every track it seems! But the album will get better with more familiarity. Two great tracks you might miss at first are "Heirloom" (great bassline!) and "Aurora" (lovely!). I think that the final track, "Unison," "Hidden Place," "It's Not Up to You" and "Pagan Poetry" are great. And then there's "Undo." I love Bj�rk's multi-layered vocals and the way that they blend in with the choir and then dive and swoop around. The liabilties on the album are "An Echo, A Stain" "Sun in Mouth" and "Harm of Will" -- she sounds demented and barmy on all of them. I don't hate those tracks, but they're not easy to get into. They do have a certain moodiness to them though. "Vespertine" is going to be a perfect album for the depths of winter. Give it more of a listen and you'll find a deeper beauty than at first seems apparent.
RADIOHEAD: I must admit that I enjoy Radiohead's 'Amnesiac" album. It's not in the same class as "The Bends" or "OK Computer" but it is better than "Kid A" (which has a lot of great moments). "Knives Out" is utterly sublime. 'Dollars and Cents" and 'Living in a Glass House" are also standouts. Pity the album has tracks like "Pulk" (great beat, but it doesn't really go anywhere) and 'Spinning Plates," which are little more than Thom Yorke pissing around with ProTools and some interesting sounds. I like the way that the album shifts into a mellower groove in it's second half. Maybe they'll get the guitars out on the next album as they've been hinting? (we've heard that one before, mind.) Sublime concert this year too.
Re: Best CD's of 2001
S
Stephen
(view)
Would love to hear Dave Baerwald's picks: -- here are mine
Best albums:
DOVES -- 'Lost Souls'
MARILLION -- 'Anoraknophobia'
NEIL FINN -- 'One Nil'
ELBOW -- Asleep in the Back
BJORK -- 'Vespertine'
RADIOHEAD -- 'Amnesiac'
Ok, I suppose DOVES was released late last year, but I only heard them in January. This album is astonishing -- every track. Great sense of melody, atmosphere and dynamics. The sound of what they do with layers of electric and acoustic guitars are amazing.
MARILLION are a band that reach musical and emotional places most bands don't know exist. And they're ever evolving -- no album is the same. Their secret weapon is singer Steve Hogarth -- pure emotion. He's in the same league as Jeff Buckley, Robert Plant, Peter Gabriel but doesn't sound like any of them. Anoraknophobia isn't dark, like previous records (check out the band's 'Afraid of Sunlight' album from 1995). This album is a musically inventive delight. The brooding 11 minute track 'This Is the 21st Century' is worth the purchase alone.
NEIL FINN: Never thought he'd better his superb first solo album, 'Try Whistling This,' but he has. There is a song called "The Rest of the Day off," which is truly sublime -- it's a song that lyrically and melodically evokes a beautiful sunny afternoon. And then the song suddenly transitions straight into the next track "Hole in the Ice" so that it is really an extension of the previous song. The gear shift (with some very John Bonham-esque drumming) with chorus so gorgeous that it defies description. That's my summer song, right there.
Strange that America suddenly lost interest in Crowded House after their first two albums, just as they were starting to produce their best work. I think Neill Finn is unquestionably one of the most gifted melodicists writing songs today.
ELBOW -- 'Newborn' is a contender for song of the year. It starts off prettily enough and then the band and singer start turning the screws and take this song in an ever more emotionally intense direction. By the time the singer, who has a voice that reminds me of Paul Buchanan and Peter Gabriel, sings, 'bring your lips to my eyes/taste my tears on your soul...' you'll be in tears. I was. Anyone who likes the sonic majesty of the Doves will like this.
BJORK: She's special with a musical imagination and vision many female singers sorely lack. What this album lacks is the variety of colors and styles of "Debut" or "Post" (the latter album maybe lacked focus because of that) so I sort of miss that. But "Vespertine" wants to keep you locked into one overall mood -- I wish she'd used a greater variety of instrumentation because there are choirs and harps on just about every track it seems! But the album will get better with more familiarity. Two great tracks you might miss at first are "Heirloom" (great bassline!) and "Aurora" (lovely!). I think that the final track, "Unison," "Hidden Place," "It's Not Up to You" and "Pagan Poetry" are great. And then there's "Undo." I love Bj�rk's multi-layered vocals and the way that they blend in with the choir and then dive and swoop around. The liabilties on the album are "An Echo, A Stain" "Sun in Mouth" and "Harm of Will" -- she sounds demented and barmy on all of them. I don't hate those tracks, but they're not easy to get into. They do have a certain moodiness to them though. "Vespertine" is going to be a perfect album for the depths of winter. Give it more of a listen and you'll find a deeper beauty than at first seems apparent.
RADIOHEAD: I must admit that I enjoy Radiohead's 'Amnesiac" album. It's not in the same class as "The Bends" or "OK Computer" but it is better than "Kid A" (which has a lot of great moments). "Knives Out" is utterly sublime. 'Dollars and Cents" and 'Living in a Glass House" are also standouts. Pity the album has tracks like "Pulk" (great beat, but it doesn't really go anywhere) and 'Spinning Plates," which are little more than Thom Yorke pissing around with ProTools and some interesting sounds. I like the way that the album shifts into a mellower groove in it's second half. Maybe they'll get the guitars out on the next album as they've been hinting? (we've heard that one before, mind.) Sublime concert this year too.
Best albums:
DOVES -- 'Lost Souls'
MARILLION -- 'Anoraknophobia'
NEIL FINN -- 'One Nil'
ELBOW -- Asleep in the Back
BJORK -- 'Vespertine'
RADIOHEAD -- 'Amnesiac'
Ok, I suppose DOVES was released late last year, but I only heard them in January. This album is astonishing -- every track. Great sense of melody, atmosphere and dynamics. The sound of what they do with layers of electric and acoustic guitars are amazing.
MARILLION are a band that reach musical and emotional places most bands don't know exist. And they're ever evolving -- no album is the same. Their secret weapon is singer Steve Hogarth -- pure emotion. He's in the same league as Jeff Buckley, Robert Plant, Peter Gabriel but doesn't sound like any of them. Anoraknophobia isn't dark, like previous records (check out the band's 'Afraid of Sunlight' album from 1995). This album is a musically inventive delight. The brooding 11 minute track 'This Is the 21st Century' is worth the purchase alone.
NEIL FINN: Never thought he'd better his superb first solo album, 'Try Whistling This,' but he has. There is a song called "The Rest of the Day off," which is truly sublime -- it's a song that lyrically and melodically evokes a beautiful sunny afternoon. And then the song suddenly transitions straight into the next track "Hole in the Ice" so that it is really an extension of the previous song. The gear shift (with some very John Bonham-esque drumming) with chorus so gorgeous that it defies description. That's my summer song, right there.
Strange that America suddenly lost interest in Crowded House after their first two albums, just as they were starting to produce their best work. I think Neill Finn is unquestionably one of the most gifted melodicists writing songs today.
ELBOW -- 'Newborn' is a contender for song of the year. It starts off prettily enough and then the band and singer start turning the screws and take this song in an ever more emotionally intense direction. By the time the singer, who has a voice that reminds me of Paul Buchanan and Peter Gabriel, sings, 'bring your lips to my eyes/taste my tears on your soul...' you'll be in tears. I was. Anyone who likes the sonic majesty of the Doves will like this.
BJORK: She's special with a musical imagination and vision many female singers sorely lack. What this album lacks is the variety of colors and styles of "Debut" or "Post" (the latter album maybe lacked focus because of that) so I sort of miss that. But "Vespertine" wants to keep you locked into one overall mood -- I wish she'd used a greater variety of instrumentation because there are choirs and harps on just about every track it seems! But the album will get better with more familiarity. Two great tracks you might miss at first are "Heirloom" (great bassline!) and "Aurora" (lovely!). I think that the final track, "Unison," "Hidden Place," "It's Not Up to You" and "Pagan Poetry" are great. And then there's "Undo." I love Bj�rk's multi-layered vocals and the way that they blend in with the choir and then dive and swoop around. The liabilties on the album are "An Echo, A Stain" "Sun in Mouth" and "Harm of Will" -- she sounds demented and barmy on all of them. I don't hate those tracks, but they're not easy to get into. They do have a certain moodiness to them though. "Vespertine" is going to be a perfect album for the depths of winter. Give it more of a listen and you'll find a deeper beauty than at first seems apparent.
RADIOHEAD: I must admit that I enjoy Radiohead's 'Amnesiac" album. It's not in the same class as "The Bends" or "OK Computer" but it is better than "Kid A" (which has a lot of great moments). "Knives Out" is utterly sublime. 'Dollars and Cents" and 'Living in a Glass House" are also standouts. Pity the album has tracks like "Pulk" (great beat, but it doesn't really go anywhere) and 'Spinning Plates," which are little more than Thom Yorke pissing around with ProTools and some interesting sounds. I like the way that the album shifts into a mellower groove in it's second half. Maybe they'll get the guitars out on the next album as they've been hinting? (we've heard that one before, mind.) Sublime concert this year too.
