[Severian]

Originally Posted by noisereductions

alright. So then as I assumed you've decided it's not good without hearing it. That's fine. Do your thing.

I like "Times Like These" myself. Shrug. I like pretty much all their stuff. Though One By One is certainly a weak link in their discography.

I don't know, to me much of their post 90's work is just good straight forward rock and roll. It's not ground-breaking or anything, but it sounds good to my ears.

At any rate Concrete And Gold is interesting because the Foo Fighters and Queens Of The Stone Age seem to have been hanging out quite a bit, bouncing ideas off each other while recording their new albums and I feel like the influence of the other shows in both albums. The new QOTSA is friggin' great as well, and I feel like it's "okay" to like them haha.

It is ok to like them. If it sounds good to your ears, good for you. But yeah, I’m deciding I don’t need to hear it because I am pretty sure I know what it sounds like. Is it a drastic 180 change from everything the Foos have recorded since 1997? If so, if you tell me, “Yes Severian, it’s completely new and different and totally unlike everything else,” then I will listen to it.

If that’s not the case, no point.

I also don’t really like any QOTSA post-Songs for the Deaf. Even that album is super meh compared to the two before it, which were brilliant. Kind of a similar situation to the Foos in that regard, I guess. And haven’t those two bands had kind of an incestuous relationship since like 2001?

Anyway, yeah, I kind of hate straight forward rock that is made in this era. Straight forward rock from back when the world needed such things has a certain vitality to it. Straight forward rock right now sounds like the radio in a dentist’s office.

[noisereductions]

I get you. And I think straightforward rock is just comforting to my ears these days. Not that I don't like other stuff of course. But sure, Foos and Weezer and whatever is def straightforward. No doubt.

I've mentioned recently that in a weird way this "dentists office rock" is almost interesting outsider music to me because... I don't know who else is listening to it besides me haha. I guess it's Nu Dad Rock tho. Or whatever you wanna call it.

Does the new Foos sound like nothing they did before? Nah. It does sound darker and has a QOTSA vibe I guess. It's kind of proggy at times. Eh. I'm not urging you to listen. But it's a good album. Damn good to my ears.

I still think Songs For The Deaf is great. I kind of put it up there next to Rated R really.

I'm surprised Smear came off somewhat jerky to you. He seems like a nice dude in interviews or whatever. Though, I don't think any other "rock star" nowadays has Nicest Guy Award level reputation that Grohl does haha.

[noisereductions]

Actually, a question: why doesn't the world need straight forward rock now in your opinion?

[Severian]

Originally Posted by noisereductions

I get you. And I think straightforward rock is just comforting to my ears these days. Not that I don't like other stuff of course. But sure, Foos and Weezer and whatever is def straightforward. No doubt.

I've mentioned recently that in a weird way this "dentists office rock" is almost interesting outsider music to me because... I don't know who else is listening to it besides me haha. I guess it's Nu Dad Rock tho. Or whatever you wanna call it.

Does the new Foos sound like nothing they did before? Nah. It does sound darker and has a QOTSA vibe I guess. It's kind of proggy at times. Eh. I'm not urging you to listen. But it's a good album. Damn good to my ears.

I still think Songs For The Deaf is great. I kind of put it up there next to Rated R really.

I'm surprised Smear came off somewhat jerky to you. He seems like a nice dude in interviews or whatever. Though, I don't think any other "rock star" nowadays has Nicest Guy Award level reputation that Grohl does haha.

The Pat Smear thing is complicated. I didn’t talk to him more than to introduce myself, but I observed him, and I didn’t really like what I saw. That’s all. This was in 1996, I think.

QOTSA = SELF-TITLED > Rated R > Songs for the Deaf

[Severian]

Originally Posted by noisereductions

Actually, a question: why doesn't the world need straight forward rock now in your opinion?

I’ll hVe to give this more thought, but my quick answer is thy after five decades of guitar/bass/drum rock and pop mixtures, all that ground has pretty much been covered. There’s some mind blowing music out there, but none of it is of the “3-minute songs by dudes singing about girls” variety.

[noisereductions]

Originally Posted by Severian

I’ll hVe to give this more thought, but my quick answer is thy after five decades of guitar/bass/drum rock and pop mixtures, all that ground has pretty much been covered. There’s some mind blowing music out there, but none of it is of the “3-minute songs by dudes singing about girls” variety.

I get what you're saying about covered ground, but I don't know why we NEED all music to be mind blowing or new. I feel like this kind of thinking is akin to saying something like "eh, after all the years we've heard variations of every kind of joke... so we don't need comedy movies anymore." Y'know?

I think that in this day and age we need straight ahead rock and comedy movies just as much as we need chicken soup, bruh.

[Severian]

Originally Posted by noisereductions

I get what you're saying about covered ground, but I don't know why we NEED all music to be mind blowing or new. I feel like this kind of thinking is akin to saying something like "eh, after all the years we've heard variations of every kind of joke... so we don't need comedy movies anymore." Y'know?

I think that in this day and age we need straight ahead rock and comedy movies just as much as we need chicken soup, bruh.

Yeah I think so too. But we don’t need the same rock and roll formulas that made the ‘80s the ‘80s or the ‘90s the ‘90s. We need rock that both rocks and is exciting and fresh.

So, no, we shouldn’t stop making comedy movies. Just, y’know, no more Jerry Lewis ones. If that makes sense.

[evollove]

Let's say there is a new band.

They sound almost exactly like Joy Division. They admit in interviews they model themselves on JD.

Here's the catch: they have much better songs, and in many other ways are a superior band.

Exciting or eh?

[greenlight]

The Upper Wilds debut is easily the best rock record this year

Upper Wilds is the new band of Brooklyn based musician Dan Friel (Parts & Labor). Friel’s calling cards are his heavily distorted textures and addictive melodies. These high intensity pop songs are reminiscent of label mates Lightning Bolt, with whom Friel toured in 2015. However, where Lightning Bolt's vocals are heavily distorted, Friel’s tend toward the soaring style of pop/punk vocalists. The limited LP Guitar Module 2017 was recorded with Friel playing all the guitar and keys and for the first time since Parts & Labor, singing. Captured by the engineering team at Machines With Magnets (Battles, The Body), Guitar is an overdriven soundtrack for powering through dark days, and a sweaty summer anthem that should be played LOUDLY.

[Severian]

Originally Posted by evollove

Let's say there is a new band.

They sound almost exactly like Joy Division. They admit in interviews they model themselves on JD.

Here's the catch: they have much better songs, and in many other ways are a superior band.

Exciting or eh?

Probably at least a little bit exciting, but this isn’t the case with the Foos of course.

[evollove]

I've just been going back and forth in my mind: something original vs something simply good. Can't make up my mind which is preferable.

[noisereductions]

Originally Posted by evollove

I've just been going back and forth in my mind: something original vs something simply good. Can't make up my mind which is preferable.

I think originality is overrated honestly. And I mean let's be real: any band making music with say guitars and drums... not all that original is it? They might use some diff chords - or no chords at all. But other bands have done those things too.

With music, and any art, I just want things that sound good to me or whatever. It's all about the personal response. Like, when I hear a song I like I'm not thinking "okay, wait... is this new and unique? Has this been done before? I don't want to like it if it's not checking off these boxes first..." y'know?

[Severian]

Originally Posted by noisereductions

I think originality is overrated honestly. And I mean let's be real: any band making music with say guitars and drums... not all that original is it? They might use some diff chords - or no chords at all. But other bands have done those things too.

With music, and any art, I just want things that sound good to me or whatever. It's all about the personal response. Like, when I hear a song I like I'm not thinking "okay, wait... is this new and unique? Has this been done before? I don't want to like it if it's not checking off these boxes first..." y'know?

Same here with the “does it sound good to me?” criteria, but I do think that things that sound new, different or compelling in one way or another are more likely to sound good to me than things that sound exactly like 40+ years of other stuff.

Very little is truly original, but the stuff that is tends to be better overall than the stuff that lacks inventiveness and originality completely. That can, I believe, be pretty fairly said about the Foo Fighters. There is nothing going on there that hasn’t been done better a million times.

But I do think I know what you mean to some extent. After all, I get all the Thurston and Lee albums knowing they’re going to sound like Thurston and Lee. And I like those albums. But they don’t pump me up or make my brain tingle like shit that sounds urgent and necessary and daring.

But whatever I’m just some asshole.

[noisereductions]

Foo Fighters
There Is Nothing Left To Lose
1999, Interesting album this one. On their third LP, the Foos were reduced to a core trio of Dave on guitar, Nate on bass and newly hired Taylor on drums. Maybe this stripped down lineup is responsible for the shift towards more traditional rock songwriting here. Or maybe it was the luxury of recording this thing in Dave's basement with no deadlines or label interference. Whatever it is, this was surely a divisive release among fans. Me? I loved it when it came out. And I guess I still do. There's no denying that nostalgia plays a big role in that. This is one of those records that just brings me back to a specific time: my first year in college, working in a record store and hanging out with friends. So that's what this album sounds like to me. It sounds like a carefree time with no responsibilities; a time before social media and all the other rubbish of modern life. But I digress. "Stacked Actors" is friggin' awesome. A great way to start a record as it stands as a manifesto of sorts. It opens with riffs akin to what you'd have expected on The Colour And The Shape, but then morphs into something way more chill and then bounces back and forth. And that's what this record kind of is. It's happy turned up to eleven, but also comfortable with laying low. There's definitely a good number of mellow songs here - "Next Year" perhaps the most well known. The album also featured "Learn To Fly" which has remained one of the band's calling cards. I think my favorite may still be "Breakout," which feels like it shows its 80's punk and new wave love on its sleeve. Look, this record is definitely not the same caliber as its two predecessors. But just going by nostalgia, There Is Nothing Left To Lose sounds really really great to my ears.

[Severian]

Originally Posted by noisereductions

Foo Fighters
There Is Nothing Left To Lose
1999, Interesting album this one. On their third LP, the Foos were reduced to a core trio of Dave on guitar, Nate on bass and newly hired Taylor on drums. Maybe this stripped down lineup is responsible for the shift towards more traditional rock songwriting here. Or maybe it was the luxury of recording this thing in Dave's basement with no deadlines or label interference. Whatever it is, this was surely a divisive release among fans. Me? I loved it when it came out. And I guess I still do. There's no denying that nostalgia plays a big role in that. This is one of those records that just brings me back to a specific time: my first year in college, working in a record store and hanging out with friends. So that's what this album sounds like to me. It sounds like a carefree time with no responsibilities; a time before social media and all the other rubbish of modern life. But I digress. "Stacked Actors" is friggin' awesome. A great way to start a record as it stands as a manifesto of sorts. It opens with riffs akin to what you'd have expected on The Colour And The Shape, but then morphs into something way more chill and then bounces back and forth. And that's what this record kind of is. It's happy turned up to eleven, but also comfortable with laying low. There's definitely a good number of mellow songs here - "Next Year" perhaps the most well known. The album also featured "Learn To Fly" which has remained one of the band's calling cards. I think my favorite may still be "Breakout," which feels like it shows its 80's punk and new wave love on its sleeve. Look, this record is definitely not the same caliber as its two predecessors. But just going by nostalgia, There Is Nothing Left To Lose sounds really really great to my ears.

Last Foos album that didn’t make me sick with boredom. Probably would today if I tried it out.

BUT, I like “Gimme Stitches,” and “Generator” was definitely a soundtrack to a carefree time for me as well.

“Learn to Fly” is godawful.
“Aurora” was pretty OK.
That’s about it.

[noisereductions]

"Learn To Fly" is one I can't separate from the nostalgia, so I know I'm not being unbiased.

"Stitches" is very good. "MIA" is another fav on there.

[Severian]

Originally Posted by noisereductions

"Learn To Fly" is one I can't separate from the nostalgia, so I know I'm not being unbiased.

"Stitches" is very good. "MIA" is another fav on there.

I used to listen to this record and think about my high school girlfriend. I’d lie in bed, put this on, along with some other unrepentantly uber-emotional crap like Blink 182’s Dude Ranch (DON’T JUDGE YOUNG ME!!! — I also listened to Sonic Youth and Aphex Twin like crazy, but they didn’t cut it for girl stuff) when I wanted to just sink into the drama of high school relationships.

“MIA” is ok.

But I think the last Foos song that really did it for me was “Gimme Stitches.” And that was a massive step down from “My Hero,” which was one of the only moments on “The Colour and the Shape” that wasn’t a massive step down from the worst moments on self-titled.

I’m just not a Foos guy. I’ve seen them live several times and I’ve met Dave, because I *used* to be a Foos in the post-Nirvana void of high school. But there’s no going back for me.

Still, to this day, both the song and video for “My Hero” get me right in the gut.

[noisereductions]

I mean even the way you talk about The Colour And The Shape.... yeah, you are just not a Foos guy haha.

[noisereductions]

Radiohead
I Might Be Wrong: Live Recordings
2001, It felt like "forever" waiting for the release of Kid A, so it felt really shocking when both Amnesiac and this live album followed in quick succession the following year. In my highly unscientific estimation, nine out of ten live albums are just kind of trinkets for fans. They're easy ways to put out more product. But then there's that one in ten live album that really stands on its own. To me, this is one of those. It's the rare live album that I kind of think of as its own unique whole rather than just "a bunch of live versions compiled on one disc." It works as a perfect companion to Kid A and Amnesiac, given that there are no songs present from earlier albums. "National Anthem," "Idioteque," "Everything In Its Right Place," and the title track all have a new-found urgency here. Of course most listeners will tell you that the real reason to own this one is for "True Love Waits," which had been kicking around live sets since 1995 but would only have an official release via this live album until finally getting the studio treatment in 2016. And that's fine. "True Love Waits" is a fantastic song, and the sparse acoustic arrangement here works wonderfully as a set closer. But for me the real standout is the version of "Like Spinning Plates" on this one. Don't get me wrong, the original is a brilliant studio track. But it is a studio track. This live rendition gets rid of all the electronic trickery and instead rethinks the song as a piano ballad. It is mind-blowing and really, the two versions sound like two totally different songs. I love. "Dollars And Cents" is the only dud for me here - and it's not even really a dud, it's just that while every other song finds a new identity in this live setting, "Dollars And Cents" just really sounds like the studio version. Just not all that interesting. If anything, I wish that this album had been stretched out longer than a mere eight songs. But then again, Radiohead left me wanting more at the end of a live album so I guess that's proof that they did something really right.

[Genteel Death]

Green Day - Dookie

Smashing Pumpkins - Adore

Crash Test Dummies - God Shuffled His Feet

I listened to that Crash Test Dummies record last night. It was the first time in years. Anyone with me when I claim they're one of the most criminally underrated bands of that era?