Moderately Acclaimed Albums 2019 - Round 2.7

[Brad]

Welcome to Round 2.7 of Moderately Acclaimed Albums 2019!

Vote for your favorite album in each match-up.
Remember, anyone can vote as long as the voter has heard both albums.

Good-spirited comments are encouraged, but not absolutely necessary.
Deadline = September 10th at 10am EST.

Here's a link to the bracket for the entire tournament:
http://www.bracketmaker.com/tlist.cfm?t ... Moderately Acclaimed Albums 2019

Match-ups:
1. Echo and the Bunnymen - Crocodiles vs. Thelonious Monk - Brilliant Corners
2. Pink Floyd - Animals vs. Super Furry Animals - Radiator
3. Boo Radleys - Everything's Alright Forever vs. Flotation Toy Warning - Bluffer's Guide To The Flight Deck
4. Alabama 3 - Exile On Coldharbour Lane vs. Heatmiser - Mic City Sons

Also, we have a TIE from last week:
Mano Negra - Puta's Fever vs. Wire - Chairs Missing ***TIE! 7-7! Next vote from someone who has not already voted in this match-up wins!!!***


Oh I'm sleeping under strange strange skies

[acroamor]

2. Pink Floyd - Animals
4. Heatmiser - Mic City Sons

[FrankLotion]

1. Thelonious Monk - Brilliant Corners
2. Pink Floyd - Animals
3. Boo Radleys - Everything's Alright Forever
4. Heatmiser - Mic City Sons

[Rdwdbob]

THELONIUOS MONK - BRILLIANT CORNERS
SUPER FURRY ANIMALS - RADIATOR

[Rdwdbob]

FLOTATION TOY WARNING - BLUFFERS GUIDE TO THE FLIGHT DECK

[DaveC]

1. Echo and the Bunnymen - Crocodiles vs. Thelonious Monk - Brilliant Corners
2. Pink Floyd - Animals vs. Super Furry Animals - Radiator
3. Boo Radleys - Everything's Alright Forever vs. Flotation Toy Warning - Bluffer's Guide To The Flight Deck
4. Alabama 3 - Exile On Coldharbour Lane vs. Heatmiser - Mic City Sons

[Brad]

My picks:
1. Echo and the Bunnymen - Crocodiles vs. Thelonious Monk - Brilliant Corners
2. Pink Floyd - Animals vs. Super Furry Animals - Radiator
3. Boo Radleys - Everything's Alright Forever vs. Flotation Toy Warning - Bluffer's Guide To The Flight Deck
4. Alabama 3 - Exile On Coldharbour Lane vs. Heatmiser - Mic City Sons

Thanks!

[mileswide]

I was beginning to suffer post-punk fatigue at the start of Crocodiles. I found individual parts engaging- the ringing guitar and moody bass particularly- but not responsible for any memorable band performances among the first four songs and the murky production did Ian McCulloch's voice no favours. Then the title track rocks up with its daffy lyrics followed by the strident Rescue (the only song from the album I knew beforehand) and my view of the album turns on its head, staying there right through the rattling guitar and drum assault of Happy Death Men.

Whilst having nothing else in common with the Bunnymen album, Brilliant Corners also took a while to appeal to me. To an untutored ear (i.e. one of mine), it might have sounded aimless and experimental without the energy that experimentation usually brings. Things perk up with Pannonica, a jaunty number with a similar melody in parts to Fly Me to the Moon, while Bemsha Swing is a warm celebration of a track that could have been comfortably tweaked a decade later into becoming a Stax song.

All the same, Crocodiles sneaks ahead of Brilliant Corners.

[Listyguy]

Also, we have a TIE from last week:
Mano Negra - Puta's Fever vs. Wire - Chairs Missing ***TIE! 7-7! Next vote from someone who has not already voted in this match-up wins!!!***

In case it was missed in the other thread, I'll break this tie by voting for Mano Negra.

[Brad]

Thanks Listyguy. Mano Negra wins!

[Romain]

1. Echo and the Bunnymen - Crocodiles
2. Pink Floyd - Animals
3. Boo Radleys - Everything's Alright Forever
4. Alabama 3 - Exile On Coldharbour Lane

[Madzong]

Echo & The Bunnymen
Pink Floyd
Boo Radleys
Alabama 3

[spiritualized]

1. Echo and the Bunnymen - Crocodiles (10/10) vs. Thelonious Monk - Brilliant Corners (7/10)
2. Pink Floyd - Animals (9/10) vs. Super Furry Animals - Radiator (9/10) - TIE / PASS
3. Boo Radleys - Everything's Alright Forever(10/10) vs. Flotation Toy Warning - Bluffer's Guide To The Flight Deck (7/10)
4. Alabama 3 - Exile On Coldharbour Lane (7/10) vs. Heatmiser - Mic City Sons (9/10)

[Honorio]

5. Echo and the Bunnymen - Crocodiles (1980) vs. 1. Thelonious Monk - Brilliant Corners (1957)
2. Pink Floyd - Animals (1977) vs. 4. Super Furry Animals - Radiator (1997)
6. The Boo Radleys - Everything's Alright Forever (1992) vs. 7. Flotation Toy Warning - Bluffer's Guide to the Flight Deck (2004)
8. Alabama 3 - Exile On Coldharbour Lane (1997) vs. 3. Heatmiser - Mic City Sons (1996)

[Rdwdbob]

ALABAMA 3 - EXILE ON COLDHARBOUR LANE (toughest matchup for me yet - if Alabama 3 gets beat I'd be quite happy to see Heatmiser go on to the next round)

[bonnielaurel]

Thelonious Monk - Brilliant Corners
Pink Floyd - Animals
Boo Radleys - Everything's Alright Forever
Heatmiser - Mic City Sons

[Edre Depeche Head]

Pink Floyd - Animals

Undeniably their best album in my opinion.

[Brad]

Pink Floyd - Animals
Undeniably their best album in my opinion.

Agreed, and the second time it has been my favorite album in the entire tournament (neither was my nomination!)

[CupOfDreams]

1. Echo and the Bunnymen - Crocodiles
2. Pink Floyd - Animals
3. Boo Radleys - Everything's Alright Forever
4. Alabama 3 - Exile On Coldharbour Lane

[Rob]

Pink Floyd - Animals

Undeniably their best album in my opinion.

Interesting, as I find it by far the weakest of their seventies run. There's the on-the-nose people-are-bad-animals metaphors that I suspect from a 14 year old; whereas their two previous albums dealt with far more relatable and realistic alienation. It's one of the biggest lyrical declines this side of Coldplay (The Wall suffers here too, but it has it's moments). It's got some great music, but even that element is far less than the others of the era. Meddle felt more searching and exciting, Dark Side of the Moon and The Wall had a lot of variety, while on Wish You Where Here their song reached both a composition as well as an emotional peak. Animals is not a bad album by any measure, but compared to their other output it feels strangely flat and as a step backward. It feels like something a band would make at the beginning, before working towards the more complex beauty of the two-punch Dark Side and Wish You Where Here, yet it came later. I guess that this was where Roger Waters definitely became the leader and his personal hang-ups became the deciding factor.


I'm really surprised that Boo Radleys overwhelm Flotation Toy Warning here. Everything's Alright Forever has grown on me and is a fine shoegazer, but A Bluffer's Guide to the Flight Deck is one of the most emotional and compositional stunning albums here to me; as well as a top discovery. It's my favorite of the week by quite some measure. I suspected that it falls right in line with the tastes here, but apparently not. What gives?

[Edre Depeche Head]

Pink Floyd - Animals

Undeniably their best album in my opinion.

Interesting, as I find it by far the weakest of their seventies run. There's the on-the-nose people-are-bad-animals metaphors that I suspect from a 14 year old; whereas their two previous albums dealt with far more relatable and realistic alienation. It's one of the biggest lyrical declines this side of Coldplay (The Wall suffers here too, but it has it's moments). It's got some great music, but even that element is far less than the others of the era. Meddle felt more searching and exciting, Dark Side of the Moon and The Wall had a lot of variety, while on Wish You Where Here their song reached both a composition as well as an emotional peak. Animals is not a bad album by any measure, but compared to their other output it feels strangely flat and as a step backward. It feels like something a band would make at the beginning, before working towards the more complex beauty of the two-punch Dark Side and Wish You Where Here, yet it came later. I guess that this was where Roger Waters definitely became the leader and his personal hang-ups became the deciding factor.

In comparison to The Wall, it’s much more straightforward and doesn’t have as much filler and interludes. At its core it takes the extended songs of Wish You Were Here And fits them to lyrical statements from The Wall. For my ears it just all comes together very well, especially Pigs.

[Rdwdbob]

Pink Floyd - Animals

Undeniably their best album in my opinion.

Interesting, as I find it by far the weakest of their seventies run. There's the on-the-nose people-are-bad-animals metaphors that I suspect from a 14 year old; whereas their two previous albums dealt with far more relatable and realistic alienation. It's one of the biggest lyrical declines this side of Coldplay (The Wall suffers here too, but it has it's moments). It's got some great music, but even that element is far less than the others of the era. Meddle felt more searching and exciting, Dark Side of the Moon and The Wall had a lot of variety, while on Wish You Where Here their song reached both a composition as well as an emotional peak. Animals is not a bad album by any measure, but compared to their other output it feels strangely flat and as a step backward. It feels like something a band would make at the beginning, before working towards the more complex beauty of the two-punch Dark Side and Wish You Where Here, yet it came later. I guess that this was where Roger Waters definitely became the leader and his personal hang-ups became the deciding factor.


I'm really surprised that Boo Radleys overwhelm Flotation Toy Warning here. Everything's Alright Forever has grown on me and is a fine shoegazer, but A Bluffer's Guide to the Flight Deck is one of the most emotional and compositional stunning albums here to me; as well as a top discovery. It's my favorite of the week by quite some measure. I suspected that it falls right in line with the tastes here, but apparently not. What gives?

Rob - VERY well said all the way around! I couldn't agree more with all of your comments. Especially your subjective analysis of Pink Floyd's output.

[mileswide]

From my admittedly shallow reference pool (the only 70s Floyd albums I've heard are Dark Side, Wish You Were Here and this), I see Animals the same as Rob. I can understand the slightly strained lyrical analogies to justify the whole concept but did they have to bolt meandering instrumental sections with little more than distorted animal sounds onto every track? The animal noises sections don't even transition well with the main body of the song, they just hang there suspended like the pig on the album artwork (see, I can make strained analogies too) and you just wait for the band to get them out of their system. They completely sideline what is an album of fantastic moments- the delicate, syncopated acoustic strumming of Dogs, the power chords of Pigs that give way to what feels like a reggaefied version of Time or Have a Cigar, the lead keyboards of Sheep that push the song into alternating between Deep Purple and King Crimson. It's just that there is no need for any of the tracks to be over 10 minutes.

I find Gruff Rhys' voice too dopey (though, and I don't mean to be patronising, I like it when his voice is at his most Welsh like when he sings "bow and arrow" on Bass Turned up to D.E.A.D.) to fully take Radiator to my heart but here is an album that briskly moves through unusual topics, shifts in tone and no small amount of creativity. The sunny melody, propulsive drumming and squelchy synths of Play It Cool shows that The Flaming Lips weren't the only band flying the neo-psychedelia flag in the 90s, while the way Mountain People bursts into techno from ballad territory is inspired.

Animals would clinch this round if it were cut by a half but, as it is, Radiator deserves to go through.

[mileswide]

Everything's Alright Forever is more accessible than some shoegazing output, the vocals aren't buried in the mix for a start. It also helps that The Boo Radleys add to the noise-pop template with 80s indie (Memory Babe), folk (I Feel Nothing) and baggy (Does This Hurt?) without sounding like copies of other artists. The album does tend to drift when it follows its default genre too closely but I'm content to let it do so when the tunes are as suitably dreamy as Paradise.

Bluffer's Guide showcases a thinking-aloud approach to lyrics (resulting in some unintentionally hilarious pearls, the most memorable of which being the distorted howl of "A CHRISTMAS PRESENT IN THE MIDDLE OF JUNE!" during How the Plains Left Me Flat) and a band who don't know when to stop (three inessential hidden tracks close the album). While a few of the songs are longer than they need to be, they at least try to cram in as many ideas as will fit. It might have been tempting to build the album round the mournful trumpet sound of Donald Pleasance in the same vein as In the Aeroplane over the Sea or I'm Wide Awake, It's Morning. Instead, it's followed by the Grandaddy-esque glitchy folk of Fire Engine Part 1. The music is rarely less than graceful and mainly compelling.

It's not a straightforward choice but I'll plump for Bluffer's Guide to the Flight Deck over Everything's Alright Forever.

6. The Boo Radleys - Everything's Alright Forever (1992) vs. 7. Flotation Toy Warning - Bluffer's Guide to the Flight Deck (2004)

Having seen your entertaining evisceration of Loveless on Rank the Tracks, I didn't expect you to choose EAF given its similarities to My Bloody Valentine, Honorio. There's no reason why you can't like an album and dislike a similar album, I'm just surprised.

[Safetycat]

4. Crocodiles > 7. Brilliant Corners
There may be too much post-punk in this tournament but I am loving it! I like Brilliant Corners but I always enjoy other genres more than jazz.
3. Animals < 2. Radiator
Agree with a lot of the points above. Animals is fine, but not the best Floyd there is, while Radiator is very interesting to me.
8. Everything's Alright Forever < 6. Bluffer's Guide To The Flight Deck
Both of these albums are fine but neither really excite me.
1. Exile On Coldharbour Lane > 5. Mic City Sons
I love the style of Exile so much. It's like if Lou Reed teamed up with Moby.

[Akhenaten]

1. Echo and the Bunnymen - Crocodiles
2. Super Furry Animals - Radiator
3. Flotation Toy Warning - Bluffer's Guide To The Flight Deck
4. Alabama 3 - Exile On Coldharbour Lane

[mileswide]

I'm conscious of my posts dragging on longer than a Pink Floyd pig solo: while Mic City Sons serves decent grunged-up power pop, Exile on Coldharbour Lane's samey yet amiable electro-blues has a vibe to it that can't be beat. Standouts - Half Right & Woke up This Morning (obvious but true).

[Rob]

5. Echo and the Bunnymen - Crocodiles vs. 3. Thelonious Monk - Brilliant Corners
6. Pink Floyd - Animals vs. 4. Super Furry Animals - Radiator
7. Boo Radleys - Everything's Alright Forever vs. 1. Flotation Toy Warning - Bluffer's Guide To The Flight Deck
2. Alabama 3 - Exile On Coldharbour Lane vs. 8. Heatmiser - Mic City Sons

[Honorio]

6. The Boo Radleys - Everything's Alright Forever (1992) vs. 7. Flotation Toy Warning - Bluffer's Guide to the Flight Deck (2004)

Having seen your entertaining evisceration of Loveless on Rank the Tracks, I didn't expect you to choose EAF given its similarities to My Bloody Valentine, Honorio. There's no reason why you can't like an album and dislike a similar album, I'm just surprised.

Well, I would not say that I dislike the shoegaze genre as a whole, in fact I like some of the bands/albums quite a lot, including Slowdive/Souvlaki and Boo Radleys/Giant Steps. I even like some aspects of My Bloody Valentine output, it's the status of indisputable masterpiece of "Loveless" what annoys me the most. Anyway, to my ears "Loveless" and "Everything's Alright Forever" are not so similar. Obviously the former influenced the latter a lot. Kevin Shields' trademark wall of guitars was a huge and inescapable influence on many young British bands on the early 1990s. And "Everything's Alright Forever" got lots of them. "Paradise," the album closer, is a direct copy of the Shields style. But there are many differences too. Both in the songwriting department (at the core the Boo Radleys were a pop rock band –more conventional if you want to- with some sixties influences and even some jazzy-bossa chords thrown in for good measure) and in the arrangements (they used more dynamics on the songs –even if mostly the typical 1990s loud-quiet-loud dynamics- and not the monolithic noise approach of Shields and the mix on the Boo Radleys was not so muddy). But, after all, the album was only 6th on my ballot, even if there were strong opponents this week.

[mileswide]

But there are many differences too. Both in the songwriting department (at the core the Boo Radleys were a pop rock band –more conventional if you want to- with some sixties influences and even some jazzy-bossa chords thrown in for good measure) and in the arrangements (they used more dynamics on the songs –even if mostly the typical 1990s loud-quiet-loud dynamics- and not the monolithic noise approach of Shields and the mix on the Boo Radleys was not so muddy).

Thanks for your detailed answer, I do remember your main gripe with the MBV album being the mixing hiding quite straightforward structures and melodies. This isn't a problem with Everything's Alright Forever as all parts, particularly the vocals, are audible. As we've both pointed out, The Boo Radleys do disguise the simplicity of their songs by adding influences from outside shoegazing but I see that as more of an example of their versatility than any studio trickery. Don't get me wrong, I did enjoy EAF more than Loveless and Bluffer's Guide more than EAF this week but I can see the case for all three albums.

[Bang Jan]

3 | Echo and the Bunnymen | Crocodiles
2 | Thelonious Monk | Brilliant Corners

6 | Pink Floyd | Animals
1 | Super Furry Animals | Radiator

4 | Boo Radleys | Everything's Alright Forever
7 | Floatation Toy Warning | Bluffer's Guide to the Flight Deck

8 | Alabama 3 | Exile On Coldharbour Lane
5 | Heatmiser | Mic City Sons

[Listyguy]

1. Echo and the Bunnymen - Crocodiles vs. Thelonious Monk - Brilliant Corners

4. Alabama 3 - Exile On Coldharbour Lane vs. Heatmiser - Mic City Sons

[Brad]

Note - Results will be delayed a couple hours Tuesday due to appointments I have. I'm going to shoot for a Noon end time.

Thanks!

[Kingoftonga]

Winners in red:

1. Echo and the Bunnymen - Crocodiles vs. Thelonious Monk - Brilliant Corners
2. Pink Floyd - Animals vs. Super Furry Animals - Radiator
4. Alabama 3 - Exile On Coldharbour Lane vs. Heatmiser - Mic City Sons

[Brad]

About 2-1/2 hours left to vote!

[Brad]

19 total voters this week:
acroamor
Akhenaten
Bang Jan
bonnielaurel
Brad
CupOfDreams
DaveC
Edre Peraza
FrankLotion
Honorio
Kingoftonga
Listyguy
madzong
mileswide
Rdwdbob
Rob
Romain
Safetycat
spiritualized

Winners:
1. Echo and the Bunnymen - Crocodiles over Thelonious Monk - Brilliant Corners 10-7
2. Pink Floyd - Animals over Super Furry Animals - Radiator 11-6
3. Boo Radleys - Everything's Alright Forever over Flotation Toy Warning - Bluffer's Guide To The Flight Deck 9-5
4. Heatmiser - Mic City Sons over Alabama 3 - Exile On Coldharbour Lane 10-8

Round 2.8 is next!

[Rob]

I think this week confirms a feeling I have had for the whole of round 2: that usually when I vote for an album it is doomed. In the years of playing this game I never felt so frequently disconnected to the results. That's how it goes sometimes I guess.

[Zombeels]

Thelonious Monk - Brilliant Corners
Pink Floyd - Animals
Flotation Toy Warning - Bluffer's Guide To The Flight Deck
Heatmiser - Mic City Sons