The same as 40 years ago
I don’t know if I could ever pick a favorite album, it just depends on the day, but if there is one that I come back to most often it’s Incubus’s S.C.I.E.N.C.E. It’s indulgent in a fun, unserious, sort of manic kind of way. They play like kid’s in a musical candy shop, and when I listen to them the feeling is mutual. Honorable mention to Afungus Amongus.
Definitely a tie between Where Have All The Merrymakers Gone? from Harvey Danger, Never Bet The Devil Your Head from Subrosa, and Example from Four Squirrels. They’re currently my favorite CD albums out of the small collection I’ve gotten over the last year.
Imaginal Disk by Magdalena Bay and it’s not even close.
I’ve been listening to Wolfie’s Just Fine a lot recently
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_kD59vK8EVf4t07XFU06YMIl5r1T33GkWw
Hellmode - Jeff Rosenstock
The only other thing I’m listening to atm. is the Monogatari series openings and endings
I love the question! I rarely listen to songs or playlists, and almost never algorithm based streams. Instead I put on albums I like. Even in my 10m-15m drive to work, and do that until I’m tired on an album. So, love the question.
Aesop Rock’s Integrated Tech Solutions. Being a long time fan I thought The Impossible Kid was fantastic. TIK was as creative and ponderous as anything he’d done, but often felt more accessible and personally inviting. While accessibility is not something you generally look for with Aesop, that feeling of being personal really made it pay off. Spirit World Field Guide was good and was interesting, but didn’t work for me as much. Maybe it was a case of enjoying TIK so much, and comparison being the thief of joy? But ITS absolutely feels top notch again. Love it.
Also worth mentioning is Powerman 5000. A year or so ago (while on a kick to my youth) I found out they were still making music and had released an album (The Noble Rot) in 2020. Shortly after I discovered that, they released one in 2024 (Abandon Ship.) They’re not great songs, but they’re all great vibes. The songs feel like they 3/4s to being great to me. Like they kept the dial at a 7 or 8 instead of turning it up to 11. And even when they did turn it up, it was only at the very end. Maybe he’s going for something different, or maybe I’ve changed, but the strength feels off. But damn the vibes are still there.
Kinda wild how when Aesop dropped TIK, it felt like his magnum opus. ITS feels like a continuation. SWFG is at it’s best when I’ve taken some gummies and sink into the couch lol
While I’m reluctant to call anything a magnum opus… You’re bang on about the difference between those two and SWFG.
“Enn” by Eivør, simply amazing! Was on a concert a few weeks back, totalt 600 people and it was a blast!
Have a listen: https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_mfYUyMRk-zYA1V1Z04a7GGB106N2JT5vU&si=m-R3MtJD1CuUTmVV
My wife saw her last week with a band called Heilung. That looked pretty out the gates
High mare - dead pirates
Radiohead - Kid A
Today/the last week, I have been mostly listening to Instant Rewards by Tides from Nebula, along side their previous album From Voodoo to Zen.
The age of consent by Bronski Beat. You can get some preview here: https://www.qobuz.com/us-en/album/the-age-of-consent-bronski-beat/iiserdbkur9hc
Killer album. Here are a couple other places to find it:
The Graveyard and Voodoo by King Diamond
Voodoo by D’Angelo is another top tier album
Was, is, and probably always will be…
Pink Floyd - The Division Bell
I took in this concert back then. It was a really great show.
Damn, I imagine it was!
It was! The drum set was incredible. They had a 4 piece choir of really talented singers in the background. It was an incredible show. I was young but it made a real impression. They even flashed back and did the giant pigs falling from the towers. I’ll never forget that night.
Archived. If the link gives you crap, use Firefox…
I already use Firefox so I had no issue. Thanks!
Addendum: If you ever decide to burn that as a CD, you need to remove the default 2 second delay between tracks for the album to play through as intended.
Pink Floyd was always like that, even though they had multiple tracks, their albums were meant to be experienced as a single solid piece of work.
But I’m sure you already knew that. 👍🎶
You’re quite welcome! I found that CD in the ditch on a bicycle ride one day in my teens. Two songs were already my favorites, but finding that CD, with no scratches even, was one of my best finds.
Of course I had to archive it!
Division Bell was a big one for me too.
I realize this may be a bit of a stretch for some, but an artist called Lindsheaven Virtual Plaza took the opening track Cluster One and made a sprawling 17-minute piece combining portions of the song with his own ambient additions… It’s a track called “Polydreaming Mall” from their album Transversal Worldwide Shopping… I’ve enjoyed listening to it many times: https://underwater-computing.bandcamp.com/track/polydreaming-mall
Gilmour’s guitar work on that album gives me chills just thinking about it. Even after 30 years, Marooned still teleports my mind to some deserted island every time I hear it.
For real, that track is just 😙🤌 Gilmour might be my favorite guitarist.
David Gilmour’s On This Island is a perfect album to play right afterwards ;)
