I often think about stellar albums. The ones where they’re really isn’t a skip-able track. Off the top of my head, these come to mind: The Beach Boys Pet Sounds, Collective Soul Collective Soul (blue album), Bush 16 Stone, and Green Day Dookie. What are some of your perfect albums?
A few that I don’t see mentioned …
- Carol King - Tapestry
- Pearl Jam - Yield
- Van Morrison - Moondance
- Fountains of Wayne - self titled
Blackwater Park - Opeth
deleted by creator
I know I am alone on this but,
my chemical romance - three cheers for sweet revenge
Nirvana - Nevermind
- The Hotelier - Home, Like Noplace Is There
- Fugazi - The Argument
- Slint - Spiderland
- American Football - LP1
- toe - The Book About My Idle Plot On A Vague Anxiety
- The Cure - Disintegration
- TTNG - Animals
- Sunny Day Real Estate - How It Feels to Be Something On
- At The Drive-in - Relationship of Command
- Brand New - The Devil And God Are Raging Inside Me
- Michael Jackson - Off the wall
- She Wants Revenge - self titled
- Metric - Synthetica
- Prick - self titled
- The Avalanches - We Will Always Love You
- ISIS - Oceanica
- Lovage - Music to Make Love to Your Old Lady By
- Pixies - Doolittle
- Massive Attack - Blue Lines
- Sigur Ros - Takk…
- Cake - Fashion Nugget
- Madonna - Confessions on a Dance Floor
A New World Record by ELO.
I have loads of albums, and it depends on my mood as to what I think is perfect at a certain time. Some of mine are, and in no particular order;
Sparks - Kimono In My House
Bowie - Blackstar
Bowie - Earthling
PJ Harvey - Let England Shake
Pet Shop Boys - Actually
Blur - Modern Life is Rubbish
Pixies - Doolittle
De La Soul - 3 Feet High and Rising
Divine Comedy - Casanova
The Rezillos - I Can’t Stand The Rezillos
Madness - Keep Moving
The Beloved - X
Adam and The Ants - Prince Charming
The Who - Who Are You
Lush - Lovelife
Sleeper - Smart
Echobelly - Everyone’s Got One
Pulp - His n’ HersOh, I will stop, I could go on for ages.
Tool - Aenima
Sky Cries Mary - A Return to the Inner Experience
Dead Can Dance - Spirit chaser
Depeche Mode - Violator
Faith No More - The Real Thing.
Ok, now that more people have posted long lists, I don’t feel so bad about mine ;)
- Arcade Fire – Funeral
- Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti – Before Today
- At The Drive-In – Relationship of Command (also their EPs Vaya and In/Casino/Out)
- Kae Tempest – Let Them Eat Chaos
- Mercury Rev – Deserter’s Songs
- My Morning Jacket – Z
- Public Service Broadcasting – Every Valley
- Radiohead – OK Computer
- Radiohead – In Rainbows
- The Decemberists – Picaresque
- The Diggs – Commute
- The Dismemberment Plan – Emergency & I
- The Libertines – s/t
- The Mars Volta – Deloused in the Comatorium
- The Notwist – Shrink
- Tokyo Police Club – A Lesson in Crime (just a fantastic debut; barely an album though)
German:
- Deichkind – Niveau Weshalb Warum
Some may be an acquired taste (PSB?, also I know that The Libertines’ is not everyone’s favorite – but it’s mine :). The Arcade Fire, even though I don’t listen to them these days that much, is decade-defining for me, as is Radiohead’s OK Computer (together with Nevermind, although for some reason it didn’t make this list).
The Black Crowes - Southern Harmony Smashing Pumpkins - Siamese Dream
Honorable mention
The Black Keys - Thickfreakness The White Stripes - Icky Thump CeeLo Green - The Lady Killer
I have very little concept of what songs are from which albums anymore thanks to modern streaming subscriptions.
I’ve just started listening to Siamese Dream again, it’s one of my go-to summer albums. My favorite Pumpkins album my far, It’s just so crisp and crunchy in such a pleasing way
Going by music genre:
Hip Hop: To Pimp A Butterfly (by Kendrick Lamar), The Forever Story (JID), Madvillainy (MF DOOM), Hell on Earth (Mobb Deep)
Electronic: Selected Ambient Works (Aphex Twin), Exai (Autechre), Duntisbourne Abbots Soulmate Devastation Technique (μ-Ziq)
Black Metal: Filosofem (Burzum), Panzerfaust (Darkthrone), Pure Holocaust (Immortal), Exuvia (The Ruins of Beverast)
Death Metal: Scream Bloody Gore (Death), Realm of Chaos (Bolt Thrower), Under the Sign of the Black Mark (Bathory)
Country: Southbound (Doc Watson), Poor David’s Almanack (David Rawlings)
I’m just breaking into country and jazz. If anyone has some classic must-listen albums, I’d be all ears.
It’s been almost a year since The Forever Story came out, but it was a classic in my mind from the first second I heard it. I haven’t listened to as much hip hop these past few years but that album pulled me right back in.
I’m not the biggest fan of J Cole, but he’s discovered and boosted some amazing artists.
I felt the same way. And an album hasn’t stuck with me this long since To pimp a butterfly
Glass Animals ZABA. Willing to die on this hill.
Sitting on my record player as we speak! 😂
The vinyl sleeve is absolutely gorgeous.
It is incredibly coherent and each song very much fits into the theme they were building. I love the theme of the Island of Dr Moreau (sp?) and the Jabberwocky nonsense word stuff. It’s very sensual. It’s not mind-blowing or anything but it is a perfect album for what they were trying to accomplish (sensual, kind of dangerous but whimsical, alluring, smooth, playful, sexual). It makes a good album to buy on vinyl because with vinyl you don’t really skip songs and it favours albums that are more thematically coherent like Zaba is.
This album is too sexy for vinyl - that would require flipping
Hehe. Depends on if you’re too busy to flip or not. Opening up the gorgeous album with the double wide purple jungle scene and slipping the sleeves out is sexy in its own way.
Here we go, brace yourselves
Against The Current - Past Lives
Can’t Swim - This Too Won’t Pass
Chief State - Tough Love [EP]
Before I Turn - Lovelorn
Bearings - Hello, It’s You
Dorothy - Gifts From The Holy Ghost
Four Year Strong - Brain Pain
Greta Van Fleet - The Battle At Garden’s Gate
Guns N’ Roses - Appetite For Destruction
Intervals - The Shape Of Colours [instrumental, heavenly]
I Prevail - TRUE POWER
Knuckle Puck - While I Stay Secluded [EP]
Knuckle Puck - 20_20
Mayday Parade - Sunnyland
Micheal Jackson - Thriller
Movements - Feel Something
Neck Deep - All Distortions Are Intentional
Neck Deep - The Peace And The Panic
Neck Deep - Life’s Not Out To Get You
Nothing But Thieves - Moral Panic
Palaye Royale - Fever Dream
Paramore - Brand New Eyes
Paramore - Paramore
Paramore - After Laughter
Seaway - Big Vibe
Seaway - Vacation
Sleeping With Sirens - How It Feels To Be Lost
Sleeping With Sirens - Madness
State Champs - Kings Of The New Age
The Story So Far - The Story So Far
The Story So Far - What You Don’t See
The Structs - YOUNG&DANGEROUS
Tiny Moving Parts - Pleasant Living
Yonaka - Don’t Wait Till Tomorrow
Yonaka - Sieze The Power
Yours Truly - Self Care
Yours Truly - Afterglow [EP]Thats about it, those are some of my favourite/[near-]perfect albums/EPs.
Happy to see Tiny Moving Parts getting mentioned. I actually just listened to Celebrate for the first time a week ago, and while I think it’s great, Pleasant Living still edges it out. I just love Always Focused, I wish there were a lot more super-positive emo songs like that.