The Old Acclaimed Music Forum
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Anybody can vote so long as you've heard both albums. Voting closes next Sunday, 11pm board time.
There is a tied match from the previous week:
The Blue Nile - Hats vs
Serge Gainsbourg - Initials B.B.
Next vote in that matchup wins.
Division 1:
13th Floor Elevators - Psychadelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Elevators vs
Teenage Fanclub - Grand Prix
Division 2:
Gene Clark - No Other vs
Mercury Rev - Yerself Is Steam
Division 3:
The Antlers - Hospice vs
Tim Buckley - Starsailor
Division 4:
Stereolab - Emperor Tomato Ketchup vs
The Chills - Kaleidoscope World
Incredibly strong week, with two albums in my top 100 and the rest being very good across the board. Kaleidoscope World is my favorite discovery this round.
1. The Antlers - Hospice
2. Gene Clark - No Other
3. Teenage Fanclub - Grand Prix
4. 13th Floor Elevators - Psychadelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Elevators
5. The Chills - Kaleidoscope World
6. Tim Buckley - Starsailor
7. Stereolab - Emperor Tomato Ketchup
8. Mercury Rev - Yerself Is Steam
Division 3: Tim Buckley - Starsailor
Starsailor is top ten all time for me.
Hospice is okay, but it's pretty standard for late 00's phork.
Of course I realize not everyone will feel so strongly towards it, but standard? Surely not.
Of course I realize not everyone will feel so strongly towards it, but standard? Surely not.
Maybe 'Standard' is excessive, but I see it as not standing out from the other groups of the noisy distortiony lo-fi scene.
Edit: Now I'm listening to it again, and I feel it's close to being something really good but falls a little short, largely because the vocals aren't good enough to match the soundscapes and because the guitar in the background just tends to just play the same chord over and over.
I think it definitely is a grower, which means it's perhaps not very well suited for this type of competition. However, I think there are a few big fans of Hospice on the forum, so it might just make it. It's up against a really good album though.
That was good timing - I have a copy of Emperor Tomato Ketchup coming any day now after enjoying Dots And Loops last week...
Division 1:
The 13th Floor Elevators is my pick and in my personal top 20. Also, it's one of the earliest trippiest and best psych-albums of all time. However, I'm afraid all this won't be enough to beat Teenage Fanclub, considering the massive bias for indiepop on this forum.
13th Floor Elevators win.
Division 2:
Rococco Americana bonanza by Gene Clark wins by a narrow margin over Mercury Rev's fine debut.
No Other wins.
Division 3:
Starsailor: totally unique left-field piece of art that can't be compared to anything else. But It will not make it to the next round. Same reason as stated above.
Tim Buckley wins.
Division 4:
Pink Frost is great of course, but the rest of the Chills' Kaleidoscope World is kinda uneven. Emperor Tomato Ketchup is a 90s classic.
Stereolab wins.
Yeah, I knew from the moment I saw Starsailor's matchup that it was in trouble. But, I wouldn't count it completely out. It's the sort of album you either love or it's just not your thing at all.
This is the best week yet. I love Starsailor and Emperor Tomato Ketchup. But the division 2 matchup is the most interesting: it puts one of my nominees, Yerself is Steam, against an excellent album I picked to win the whole tournament, No Other. I think No Other will win, but I hope some people are won over by Mercury Rev's incredibly unique psychedelic masterpiece.
Division 1
Teenage Fanclub - Grand Prix
I hope I'll find time to vote in the other divisions too.
1) Teenage Fanclub: Grand Prix.
Well, I love the Fannies and this is - probably - their best album. Favorite track: Mellow Doubt. It
even includes a whistle solo.
I'll try to return regarding the other albums.
The Psychedelic Sounds Of The 13th Floor Elevators
Yerself Is Steam
Starsailor
Emperor Tomato Ketchup
The 13th Floor Elevators is my pick and in my personal top 20. Also, it's one of the earliest trippiest and best psych-albums of all time. However, I'm afraid all this won't be enough to beat Teenage Fanclub, considering the massive bias for indiepop on this forum.
13th Floor Elevators win.
Vote: 13th Floor Elevators
Two solid albums. All other things being equal, I'll go with the great guitar parts.
Vote: Mercury Rev
This surprised me the most, because I like it better than Deserter's Songs. It's kind of like Pavement with better instrumentals.
Grand Prix
No Other
Starsailor
Emperor Tomato Kethcup
Division 1: 13th Floor Elevators - Psychedelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Elevators
This bracket's a coin flip as I really enjoy both albums, I'm glad one of them will make it to the next round.
Division 2: Mercury Rev - Yerself Is Steam
This is the only Mercury Rev album I have... where to go from here? The singer's voice can be grating at times but overall really solid.
Division 3: Pass
Division 4: Stereolab - Emperor Tomato Ketchup
Division 4: The Chills
Both good albums but I've never really connected with Stereolab.
Is anybody going to break the Country Life/Initials BB tie?
Both good albums but I've never really connected with Stereolab.
Is anybody going to break the Country Life/Initials BB tie?
No one's even going to make up a fake username to break it. Might just have to have a 3 way vote in the next round,as in Slick's artists game...
Is anybody going to break the Country Life/Initials BB tie?
SUCH AN EPIC DIVISION! This is going to the books, really: both are terrific and so close of each other in terms of quality, three awesome stories to help you warm them, honestly i guess people are just scared to pick one
Err, rather, the Hats/Intials BB tie.
I'm not a fan of that particular tiebreaking method. In the previous moderate game if the tie lasted more than I week my own vote got canceled to break the tie. I'm open to other suggestions, of course.
There's a lot of albums this week that seem interesting and I want to listen to, but it's hard to find the time! I'm going to vote on the first bracket now in case I can't reach the rest:
Division 1:
13th Floor Elevators - Psychadelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Elevators WINS vs
Teenage Fanclub - Grand Prix
Grand Prix is very enjoyable, but it can't match the crazy ride that comes from listening to the 13th Floor Elevators. That album blew me away, and I might be reconsidering my (previously unfavorable) views on psychedelic rock.
Division 3:
The Antlers - Hospice vs
Tim Buckley - Starsailor
Sure, Song to the Siren is a stunning song, but the earliest versions were almost as good and the rest of the album is too left field for me. Hospice has 2 or 3 songs I'd rather live without, but the remaining songs go from good to great, with Bear being one of the most heart-squeezing songs I know.
Division 1:
13th Floor Elevators - Psychedelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Elevators WINNER
vs Teenage Fanclub - Grand Prix
Extremely close; the "highs" of 13FE are what puts this one over for me. I've always felt like I should like Teenage Fanclub more than I do. This album has some songs that are very good, but nothing near "You're Gonna Miss Me."
Division 2:
Gene Clark - No Other vs
Mercury Rev - Yerself Is Steam WINNER
Very pleased with the Gene Clark album- great addition to my collection courtesy of this tournament. While it's a much more even record than Yerself Is Steam though, I'm going with the less predictable and intriguing sounds emanating from the Rev.
Division 3:
The Antlers - Hospice WINNER
vs Tim Buckley - Starsailor
Just recently got into this Buckley and still acquiring the taste. Hospice was perhaps my favorite discovery of 2009.
Division 4:
Stereolab - Emperor Tomato Ketchup vs
The Chills - Kaleidoscope World WINNER
Great album, that Emperor Tomato Ketchup... flawless production and always an intense listen. That said, I'm a Chills fan and absolutely love Kaleidoscope World. Yes, some of it may come across as uneven, but after years of listening, even the weaker tracks have blended well with the overall mood of this collection, which gathers from several sources of the band's early material. Songs like "Pink Frost", "This Is The Way" and "I Love My Leather Jacket" do literally give me chills. The expanded CD collection is highly preferred, though my vote would be the same based on the eight track LP originally released.
Thanks!
Division 4:
Stereolab - Emperor Tomato Ketchup
Last week I wrote that I like Stereolab and Dead Can Dance equally, but that "Dots and Loops" was up against DCD's masterpiece "Within the Realm of a Dying Sun". Well, here's Stereolab's masterpiece. And The Chills can only match it with one song ("Pink Frost").
Division 1:
WINNER 13th Floor Elevators - Psychadelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Elevators vs
Teenage Fanclub - Grand Prix
Division 2:
Gene Clark - No Other vs
WINNER Mercury Rev - Yerself Is Steam
Division 3:
The Antlers - Hospice vs
WINNER Tim Buckley - Starsailor
Division 4:
Stereolab - Emperor Tomato Ketchup vs
WINNER The Chills - Kaleidoscope World
Teenage Fanclub - Grand Prix
Gene Clark - No Other
Tim Buckley - Starsailor
The Chills - Kaleidoscope World
13th Floor Elevators over Teenage Fanclub
I really haven't gotten around to enjoying Psychedelic Sounds... like I thought I would, but the mere presence of "You're Gonna Miss Me" gives it the edge in this matchup.
Mercury Rev over Gene Clark
This is a really tough one, because Gene Clark's No Other is exactly the type of album this poll is meant to support, a true lost classic that can stand side by side with the best of Neil Young and other contemporaties.
But Yerself is Steam is my nominee, and it is simply a masterpiece. It is to Deserter's Songs as White Light/White Heat is to The Velvet Underground's s/t, a highly experimental album in a completely different style from what they would go on to do. Album opener "Chasing a Bee" is a complete trip unlike anything I've ever heard, and it's currently in my top 30 songs of all time.
Tim Buckley over The Antlers
This is tougher than I expected, because Hospice blew me away completely unexpectedly. Even after just one listen, it's probably the best thing I've heard from `09.
Still, Starsailor is a formidable opponent. Like Yerself is Steam, this album is just on its own plane. It's one of the few albums out there that I would consider genuinely mindblowing. "Down on the Borderline" is my favorite, what a ridiculously great and over-the-top way to close such a singular album.
I'd love to be able to support Stereolab's excellent Emperor Tomato Ketchup, but I haven't heard the Chills. This set of albums was amazing, by the way.
Hm. Jackson, I notice you are still an eligible voter in the tied match from last week. I find that interesting.
I finally listened to both albums today. I'd like to officially break the tie in favor of Serge Gainsbourg's Initials B.B. That album was really entertaining and diverse, while I didn't really like the somewhat bland Hats.
Division 4:
Stereolab - Emperor Tomato Ketchup vs
The Chills - Kaleidoscope World
I was afraid that Kaleidoscope World would be even because of some previous comments, but there is much more to love there than just Pink Frost. Still, Emperor Tomato Ketchup, despite the fact that I don't like the way Laetitia Sadier sings in French, is an impressive album, its beginning especially.
I can not explain why the way that she sings French always annoys me though, I have not matter which French in Blondie, Arcade Fire or Electrelane while their singers have much worse accents.
Results:
Serge Gainsbourg - Initials BB 7 def
The Blue Nile - Hats 6
13th Floor Elevators - Psychadelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Elevators 8 def
Teenage Fanclub - Grand Prix 5
Mercury Rev - Yerself Is Steam 6 def
Gene Clark - No Other 4
Tim Buckley - Starsailor 7 def
The Antlers - Hospice 3
Stereolab - Emperor Tomato Ketchup 6 def
The Chills - Kaleidoscope World 5
Can't believe every single one of my favorites lost, I really thought Gene Clark would be a shoe-in. Guess I'll have to listen to Mercury Rev again because I thought it was by far the weakest album of the week.