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Best Moderately Acclaimed Album 2: Round 1.12

We're getting toward the end of the first round. For newcomers, Best Moderately Acclaimed Album is a tournament of albums ranked lower than 500 on the AM site. Nomination was done a couple months ago by forum participants.

Anyone can vote, but you have to have heard both albums in a matchup to vote. You can hear albums on sites such as Rhapsody or Grooveshark, and it's okay to vote in some matches but not others.

This week's matches:

Division 1:
Townes Van Zandt - Live At The Old Quarter, Houston, TX vs
The Breeders - Pod

Division 2:
GZA/Genius - Liquid Swords vs
Robert Plant - Raising Sand

Division 3:
Simple Minds - New Gold Dream (81-82-83-84) vs
Sade - Love Deluxe

Division 4:
Van Morrison - St Dominic's Preview vs
Brygada Kryzys - Brygada Kryzys

Division 2 is probably the biggest matchup of the week, a lot of big fans on both sides. Division 4 is interesting because it has one of the albums that least belongs in division 4 against a very obscure one.

Re: Best Moderately Acclaimed Album 2: Round 1.12

Pod
Liquid Swords
Love Deluxe
Brygada Kryzys

Re: Best Moderately Acclaimed Album 2: Round 1.12

I have nominated both albums in division 3. With both albums I have always been a fan but not had them in my all-time 100 until this year, maybe because I didn't admit to myself how much I love them. I like to think that my taste is varied, but these two records indicates favorite niches as good as any. They are two polished album, but neither new wave/synth pop or smooth soul have ever been more groovy!

The albums are currently my all-time #21 and #26. That margin is too small for me to vote. I leave it up you to separate them.

Re: Best Moderately Acclaimed Album 2: Round 1.12

1. Townes Van Zandt - Live at the Old Quarter, Houston, Texas (One of the all-time greatest live albums, and certainly the greatest acoustic live album)
2. GZA/Genius - Liquid Swords (It's growing on me more and more and is now a strong contender for my favorite hiphop album)
3. Van Morrison - St Dominic's Preview
4. Robert Plant & Alsion Kraus - Raising Sand
5. Sade - Love Deluxe (Much better than Diamond Life, I was fearing more Smooth Operators)
6. Simple Minds - New Gold Dream (81-82-83-84)
7. The Breeders - Pod
8. Brygada Kryzys - Brygada Kryzys (probably the first album in this competition I really didn't enjoy)

Re: Best Moderately Acclaimed Album 2: Round 1.12

Vote: Townes Van Zandt

A fantastic live album that just happens to hit on my current kick. I prefer the first half to the softer second half.

Vote: Robert Plant

This was a much closer vote than I expected. Liquid Swords is a very good album but doesn't quite match Raising Sand for me. Maybe if I hear it more times it'll pass it, but not yet.

Re: Best Moderately Acclaimed Album 2: Round 1.12

Vote: Simple Minds

Good versus better. I like the richness of New Gold Dream but I think they overuse the vocal echo.

Vote: Delayed

So, Brygada Kyrzys is not on Rhapsody or Grooveshark. I found a website of theirs and heard one MP3. It was so awesome I immediately ordered the CD on Amazon. All they had was one CD in the market, no MP3 album available. However, the item location is Poland. I probably won't get it in time to vote. I don't know, I'm always saying you shouldn't vote against stuff you haven't heard, but is it okay to vote for something you haven't heard? (Although St Dominics Preview is my third favorite Van Morrison, by a wide margin in both directions.)

Re: Best Moderately Acclaimed Album 2: Round 1.12

nuuunn, does it help that the Brygada Kryzys album sounds like the parallel'd polish (unlike polished) version of the Generic Flipper one..?

Re: Best Moderately Acclaimed Album 2: Round 1.12

I downloaded Brygada Kryzys via mediafire. But the one I'm having problems finding is the Van Morrison album. Anyone know where I can hear/download Saint Dominic's?

Re: Best Moderately Acclaimed Album 2: Round 1.12

Division 3:
Simple Minds - New Gold Dream (81-82-83-84) vs
Sade - Love Deluxe

I know both of these, and it's a tough, tough choice. Both are very good albums. I'm a bigger Sade fan, but my favorite album of theirs is Lovers Rock. In the end, both are in my 150-250 range all-time, but I'll give a slight edge to Love Deluxe.

Re: Best Moderately Acclaimed Album 2: Round 1.12

Division 1:
Townes Van Zandt - Live At The Old Quarter, Houston, TX WINNER
vs.The Breeders - Pod

Division 2:
GZA/Genius - Liquid Swords WINNER
vs. Robert Plant - Raising Sand

Division 3:
Simple Minds - New Gold Dream (81-82-83-84) vs
Sade - Love Deluxe WINNER

Division 4: pass (for now)

Thanks!

Re: Best Moderately Acclaimed Album 2: Round 1.12

24 hours to vote. Just a reminded to those who have been listening to albums but haven't posted a vote yet.

Re: Best Moderately Acclaimed Album 2: Round 1.12

Division 1: Townes Van Zandt - Live At The Old Quarter, Houston, TX
Division 2: Robert Plant - Raising Sand
Division 3: Simple Minds - New Gold Dream (81-82-83-84)
Division 4: -

Re: Best Moderately Acclaimed Album 2: Round 1.12

Division 2:
GZA/Genius - Liquid Swords vs
Robert Plant - Raising Sand

I'm not a fan of either, Liquid Swords might be the Wu-Tang members highly acclaimed album I like the least while the mid or high tempo songs of Raising Sand does not appeal to me at all. At the end it was a match-up between Liquid Swords peaks and Raising Sand slowest songs and I have got to give it to GZA.

Re: Best Moderately Acclaimed Album 2: Round 1.12

Division 1:
Townes Van Zandt - Live At The Old Quarter, Houston, TX WINS vs
The Breeders - Pod

Both are perfectly fine albums, but I just happen to prefer Texas country over the Pixies-esque rock. The Van Zandt album does drag a little on the second half, but there's more than enough high points to justify this.

Re: Best Moderately Acclaimed Album 2: Round 1.12

The Breeders - Pod
GZA - Liquid Swords

Re: Best Moderately Acclaimed Album 2: Round 1.12

Bit of a disappointing turnout this week.

Townes Van Zandt - Live At The Old Quarter, Houston, TX 5 def
Breeders - Pod 2

GZA/Genius - Liquid Swords 5 def
Robert Plant - Raising Sand 2

Sade - Love Deluxe 4 def
Simple Minds - New Gold Dream 81-82-83-84 2

Van Morrison - St Dominic's Preview 1 TIED WITH
Brygada Kryzys - Brygada Kryzys 1

...Is it really *that* rare? Rue De Siam and Les Stances a Sophie at least got up to four or five votes. Rather than go to sudden death I'm just going to leave this one open a full week.

Re: Best Moderately Acclaimed Album 2: Round 1.12

BillAdama
Rather than go to sudden death I'm just going to leave this one open a full week.
Excellent- just ordered a used copy of Saint Dominic's for 11 bucks (rare on CD!)... will do my damnedest to get a vote in to keep my streak alive!