Board 8 > Rank the Tracks 154: Mitski - Be the Cowboy

(+) Yeah! (+)

Steiner's week:
Nine Inch Nails - The Downward Spiral
vs.
Deftones - Diamond Eyes
vs.
A Perfect Circle - Mer de Noms

Previous results can be seen here:
https://board8.fandom.com/wiki/Rank_the_Tracks
https://board8.fandom.com/wiki/Rank_the_Tracks_Set_2
https://board8.fandom.com/wiki/Rank_the_Tracks_Set_3

The rules:
1. Listen to the album in full
2. Rank every track on the album
3. For the results, there will be a curve at the top of each list; two additional points between #1 and #2, and one additional point for the next two ranks. This way, the songs that really stick out to someone get an edge that is not immediately negated by someone else putting it lower. In the case of Demon Days, someone's 15th track will get 1 point, 14th 2 points, 4th 12 points, 3rd 14 points, 2nd 16 points, and 1st 19 points. For albums with greater than 15 tracks, everything ranked below #15 will be given 0 points and the scale for the top 15 will be the same as a 15-track album. For albums with more than 20 tracks, you only have to list your top 15 (with 16-20, I still like having the average rank listed)
4. If you want to include comments for individual songs, I will compile them in the results
5. The results will be posted at the beginning of the next topic
6. The deadline to vote is Thursday, March 7th at 8:00 AM Central Time; If you do get in a vote after the deadline but before I post the results, I will probably include it.
7. You can sign up to be added to the user cycle (a new user will be added to the end of the current cycle as long as there are four weeks remaining) - the next person on the list will choose 3 albums which the other users will vote on for the next topic.
7a. To ensure people are being given an actual choice, the three nominated albums must be by different artists. You can otherwise stick to a similar sound or era.
7b. The tiebreaker for these polls will be whichever is listed first in the poll options - make sure to deliver the results in order of your own preference (which will hopefully have the added benefit of influencing people toward your first choice if they can't decide).
7c. I have added a tiered vote structure - the least popular album will be removed and its backup votes distributed to the other two entrants.
8. Skits and tracks under 40 seconds will be excluded from the rankings unless argued otherwise

Mitski - Be the Cowboy track list:
1. Geyser
2. Why Didn't You Stop Me?
3. Old Friend
4. A Pearl
5. Lonesome Love
6. Remember My Name
7. Me and My Husband
8. Come Into the Water
9. Nobody
10. Pink in the Night
11. A Horse Named Cold Air
12. Washing Machine Heart
13. Blue Light
14. Two Slow Dancers

Current Cycle:
3/7: HBJDubs (Shpongle - Tales of the Inexpressible)
3/14: Fluttershy_Pony (The Weeknd - Dawn FM)
3/21: Steiner
3/28: Snake5555555555
4/4: ZaziGuado
4/11: firefdr
4/18: Johnbobb
4/25: FoolFantastic
5/2: Seanchan
5/9: Giggsalot
5/16: RyoCaliente
5/23: darkx
5/30: neonreaper
6/6: Great_Paul
6/13: jcgamer107
6/20: ChichiriMuyo
6/27: BlueCrystalTear
7/4: rwlh
7/11: NFUN
7/18: StifledSilence
7/25: MaxGalactica
8/1: Sheep007

I am making a few changes going forward.

I am now using Thursday as the update day instead of Sunday - I also want to get back to calculating the results while putting up the next topic. As such, the deadline will be 8 in the morning, so plan to get your votes in by Wednesday night. Thursday should work better for me, and I think it is probably best to give people the full weekend to listen instead of having the change happen during the weekend.

Secondly, I am going to make this the last user cycle. I want to get back to the first era where it felt like every album was something notable. I feel too many of us have been forcing through obscure favorites and while it's occasionally fun, it gets exhausting when we go several weeks in a row with nothing familiar. I have also eliminated the competitive rounds to get to the new phase faster.

I am not sure what the replacement will be. Right now, I'm leaning toward gathering a short list each month and then having us rank that short list; the top 4 (or 5) point earners will be that month's albums.

I would prefer to make this change now, but we have already determined the next two albums; how do others feel? Should we go through the next cycle and put off the change for half a year? Or should we make the change now?

Yoko Kanno - Ragnarok Online II OST results

The participants sorted by deviation from final results:
MaxGalactica (42)
NFUN (50)
Sheep007 (56)
HBJDubs (66)
Fluttershy_Pony (80)
Johnbobb (90)

General Album Comments

Seanchan: ...it's really not doing this album any favors when it's inevitable that I'm going to compare it to the other "YouTube only video game" album we listened to not 2 weeks ago. While Follow Slowly is fun, energetic, and interesting, this is the exact opposite. Slow, plodding, and ultimately very boring for me.

I'll probably do another listen but I'm having a hard time seeing myself wanting to do a track ranking.

Fluttershy_Pony: I... think I like this album? It's just really long... I like half the songs, which means there's a lot here I enjoy! Also a lot that's... less good... it's just a lot in general. Still, I'd say I like this.

MaxGalactica: Yoko Kanno is far and away my favorite composer. Her compositional style really connects with me with its simplicity on the surface, yet complexity when you listen more carefully. She's produced 7 albums that I've rated 5 stars on RYM (this being one of them), which is way more than any other artist (no other artist has more than 2). Ragnarok Online II is a great showcase of her abilities in both orchestration and folk songwriting, with some hints of her synth abilities. Being the soundtrack for a canceled game, it didn't receive nearly as much recognition as it probably deserved. I'm very glad we got to cover it here and that you guys get the chance to at least be exposed to it.

Johnbobb: This soundtrack gives me big Nier Automata vibes, pretty solid.

Although can we please go back to doing albums that are on spotify

Sheep007: I could complain about having multiple VGM albums in quick succession, but honestly, this is fire. Gonna do one more listen tonight, instrumental tracks are always tricky to order.

Seanchan: I'm not going to submit a ranking this week.

I did do a 2nd listen and I'll pull back a bit on my initial negativity but there was still nothing here that I really latched onto. Given that and the combination of being long and instrumental, it's just not something I want to spend more time with. Din Don Dan Dan, Hodo, and 5 Year War were ones I was most positive on, while Yoru and especially Pub were very much the opposite.

Sheep007: Solid VGM album. Not totally sold on the choir, but the synths are gorgeous, lots of interesting instrument choices throughout, and it's long but not boring in the slightest.

NFUN: I've known D^4 for like 8 years now, and it's one of few songs that I adored back then that I still adore. The "epic violin battle theme" is increasingly cliched, so I was genuinely surprised about how much it holds up when I got to it. So much personality, and that didgeridoo[?] sweep is something so appropriate and unique that I don't understand why it hasn't been copied a thousand places elsewhere. It's bears some resemblance to Water that Connects Life from Cladun in its mood and quality, so maybe it just takes a jazz musician to soar in this field

Clap & Walk just feels like odd time for beginners, like you're at some square dance at your elementary school and the teacher is trying to teach you what time signatures are and how they can vary. Some folksy music is great and some isn't, so perhaps I'm just imagining the condescension because it'd fit in the latter category regardless

Sorry, Yoru and Sailing are inextricably intertwined in my mind. You can blame Max for that one. It threads being soft, subtle, and moving brilliantly. Even if it weren't my favorite of the album, it shows what Yoko Kanno is capable enough. In the hands of too many other composers it'd be generic, cheesy or boring see joe hisaishi, so props for making something that stands out so brightly while being so understated.

you should nominate all 200 songs of ragnarok online 1 next time

HBJDubs: Some bangers early on, but the rest of the album is just okay

Ragnarok Online II OST track ranking

20. Beginners (Track #4)
Score: 2 (Average Rank: 17.67/20)
Biggest Fan(s): Fluttershy_Pony, NFUN (#15)
Biggest Detractor(s): MaxGalactica, Johnbobb, Sheep007, HBJDubs (#19)

MaxGalactica: Nice song, but it's a bit short-lived.

19. The Force Midgarts (Track #8)
Score: 3 (Average Rank: 16.17/20)
Biggest Fan(s): Fluttershy_Pony (#13)
Biggest Detractor(s): NFUN (#18)

MaxGalactica: I love me some good bagpipes. I wish it were longer though.

18. 5 Year War (Track #10)
Score: 6 (Average Rank: 16.67/20)
Biggest Fan(s): HBJDubs (#10)
Biggest Detractor(s): MaxGalactica (#20)

MaxGalactica: Brooding mood-setter. I like the usage of timpani, but it's a bit of a weaker piece on its own.

17. Kings Joy (Track #9)
Score: 7 (Average Rank: 16.67/20)
Biggest Fan(s): MaxGalactica (#12)
Biggest Detractor(s): Johnbobb (#20)

MaxGalactica: Another Warsaw Philharmonic piece. Some strong orchestration over a short playtime. The horns, trumpets, flutes and other woodwinds, mallet percussion, and strings are all wonderful here.

16. Pub (Track #17)
Score: 12 (Average Rank: 17/20)
Biggest Fan(s): Johnbobb (#4)
Biggest Detractor(s): Fluttershy_Pony, Sheep007, NFUN, HBJDubs (#20)

MaxGalactica: An example of Gabriela Robin's other style of singing, which is definitely not as good as her more ethereal, choir-like style, but I don't mind it too much. Still the e-guitar is the clear highlight of this piece for me.

Sheep007: Not sure about this one, chief. At least it's silly in a weird way rather than silly in an awful-sounding way.

15. Play Chess in the Air (Track #20)
Score: 17 (Average Rank: 13.17/20)
Biggest Fan(s): Sheep007 (#7)
Biggest Detractor(s): Fluttershy_Pony (#16)

MaxGalactica: I love when albums/soundtracks close with ambient pieces like this (Illinois did this as well) that let you close your eyes, absorb the atmosphere, and reflect on what you've experienced over the course of the album. What a great way to end one of my favorite soundtracks.

14. Red Wolf (Track #11)
Score: 20 (Average Rank: 13/20)
Biggest Fan(s): NFUN, HBJDubs (#8)
Biggest Detractor(s): Johnbobb (#18)

MaxGalactica: I like the reference to Intro Theme in the flute at 0:41. And the crescendo at 1:15 back to that theme is really well-done. The rest of the song is nice, although I wish it were more motivic.

13. Clap & Walk (Track #5)
Score: 26 (Average Rank: 12/20)
Biggest Fan(s): Fluttershy_Pony, MaxGalactica (#8)
Biggest Detractor(s): HBJDubs (#18)

MaxGalactica: The time signatures on this one are pretty cool with the focus on 7/8 and pretty regular time changes, and Kanno does a great job of making the odd time feel natural. The acoustic guitar, strings, and accordion make a fantastic combination here.

12. Church (Track #12)
Score: 33 (Average Rank: 10.5/20)
Biggest Fan(s): Fluttershy_Pony (#4)
Biggest Detractor(s): Sheep007, HBJDubs (#14)

MaxGalactica: A piano-centric playful piece in a style that Kanno has become known for over the last 15 years or so. I love the runs at 1:04 and the children's choir is really sweet-sounding.

11. Hold Your Life (Track #18)
Score: 34 (Average Rank: 10.5/20)
Biggest Fan(s): Johnbobb (#3)
Biggest Detractor(s): MaxGalactica, Sheep007 (#16)

MaxGalactica: The slow bagpipe motif is interesting, but I like the other aspects of this song more, especially the flute and cello solos.

10. Everland (Track #19)
Score: 42 (Average Rank: 9/20)
Biggest Fan(s): Fluttershy_Pony (#5)
Biggest Detractor(s): Sheep007 (#12)

MaxGalactica: Kanno uses this bubbly synth a lot in her music, and I really like it. The guitar effects and children's choir are so good too. Very saccharine piece.

9. Poem (Track #15)
Score: 52 (Average Rank: 7.5/20)
Biggest Fan(s): Fluttershy_Pony (#3)
Biggest Detractor(s): Johnbobb (#11)

MaxGalactica: The tavern-like solo acoustic guitar, double bass, and Robin's vocals create a lovely combination and make this one feel very comfy. The double bass solo in the second half is a highlight.

8. Swamper (Track #14)
Score: 53 (Average Rank: 7.83/20)
Biggest Fan(s): Johnbobb (#1)
Biggest Detractor(s): MaxGalactica (#14)

MaxGalactica: Cool, muffled effect on the cello. Not a fan of the intro, but the rest is great, especially Gabriela Robin's vocals again. I love the way the twangy guitar was panned hard right too, making a neat effect in the mix.

7. Hodo (Track #3)
Score: 53 (Average Rank: 7.33/20)
Biggest Fan(s): Sheep007 (#4)
Biggest Detractor(s): Fluttershy_Pony (#17)

MaxGalactica: A slightly less-good celtic song than Din Don Dan Dan. But Gabriela Robin's vocals take a much more prominent role here. There's a lot to love in the rhythms and melodies in this one. The drum solo at 2:34 is a big highlight for me.

6. Sailing (Track #7)
Score: 54 (Average Rank: 7.5/20)
Biggest Fan(s): NFUN (#1*)
Biggest Detractor(s): Johnbobb (#15)

MaxGalactica: With gapless playback, Yoru is supposed to seamlessly transition to this one, and it's one of my favorite seamless transitions in general. The ambient synths in the background add a lot of depth to Sailing. This one also has one of the stronger melodies in the soundtrack with the violin and tin whistle doubling on it. I love this one a lot.

5. Sara (Track #16)
Score: 58 (Average Rank: 7/20)
Biggest Fan(s): Fluttershy_Pony, Sheep007 (#2)
Biggest Detractor(s): Johnbobb (#13)

MaxGalactica: The strongest pure Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra piece. Some absolutely gorgeous orchestration, motifs, and use of dynamics. Making the harp the centerpiece of this one was an excellent decision and really makes this piece stand out amongst the other Warsaw songs.

4. Prontera Field (Track #13)
Score: 61 (Average Rank: 6.33/20)
Biggest Fan(s): Johnbobb (#2)
Biggest Detractor(s): Fluttershy_Pony, HBJDubs (#11)

MaxGalactica: The looping of short samples in this intro and the way it builds into a very full sound is breathtaking. Later once the children's choir kicks in for the climax, it's really a special moment. Prontera Field is a song I'd consider pure ear candy, and I get something more out of it every time I listen to it.

3. Intro Theme (Track #1)
Score: 72 (Average Rank: 5.17/20)
Biggest Fan(s): MaxGalactica (#1)
Biggest Detractor(s): NFUN (#10)

MaxGalactica: One of the most beautiful songs I've ever heard. The children's choir (called The Little Singers of Tokyo) is gorgeous and the string-writing and orchestration is so, so good. Fantastic melody too.

2. Din Don Dan Dan (Track #2)
Score: 77 (Average Rank: 4.67/20)
Biggest Fan(s): Sheep007, HBJDubs (#1)
Biggest Detractor(s): Fluttershy_Pony (#12)

MaxGalactica: Love the celtic goodness in this one. The bassline is awesome, the fiddles are great, and the drums and guitars work well with the main parts. Then this song really shines when Gabriela Robin's (Kanno's pseudonym) vocals are added in. Very smooth key change at 3:35 too. Such a fun song.

1. Yoru (Track #6)
Score: 80 (Average Rank: 4.33/20)
Biggest Fan(s): Fluttershy_Pony, NFUN (#1)
Biggest Detractor(s): Johnbobb (#10)

MaxGalactica: Ilaria Graziano is one of my favorite singers period. A good chunk of my favorite Kanno songs are sung by her. There's a lot of subtle detail in the songwriting and instrumentation of Yoru that really makes this song shine. The double bass and piano both have very poignant parts (I really love the piano's usage of major chords throughout, despite being in a minor key, it adds a lot of flavor to the piece) that stand out on their own. The tin whistle is a big highlight, as is the marimba solo at 2:47.

Antimatter - Saviour results

The participants sorted by deviation from final results:
Sheep007 (10)
Fluttershy_Pony (14)
Seanchan (14)
ChichiriMuyo (16)
Johnbobb (16)
MaxGalactica (16)
HBJDubs (28)

General Album Comments

Seanchan: First listen done.

There was a point during that first listen that I would have just called this moody teenager shit. That's a bit invective though. This is certainly very moody stuff though. I was maybe getting into it a little near the end, so I'm interested to see how my feelings evolve on it.

Seanchan: I'm sorry, this album sucked. It's got such a depressing mood and it kind of made me angry forcing myself through it. I'll say that I genuinely enjoyed The Last Laugh and that song did a good job of balancing the instruments and the interplay of the male and female vocalists. If anything, it also put into even more stark relief how much I hated the rest of the album and never want to listen to again.

Fluttershy_Pony: Now, see, I love depressing songs--just take a look at Mega Mana's song ranking and see how often I praise sad lyrics because I can't shut up about them even at other people's topics. The way you speak of this album, it feels like something I should love... but it didn't work for me either. At no point did I feel any sadness or depression from anything. I wouldn't call them happy songs, but as someone who loves sadness and angsty teen music, I never felt like I got any of that from this album.

To be fair, I find the album more mid-tier and forgettable than something I actively dislike, but it's weird how this is somehow too depressing for some people & not nearly depressing enough for me.

ChichiriMuyo: This album is dark and dreary, and I absolutely did not want that when I went into this album. I, too, was thinking it was just moody teenager shit, though the more I listened the less it felt like it. With more thought, I felt like this would be great stuff for a survival horror game. Or maybe an anime about a child murderer or a murderous child. It really feels like they want the listener to feel uncomfortable.

MaxGalactica: Yeah, this album mostly went in one ear and out the other. Not a bad album, but it just didn't do much to resonate with me. God is Coming was pretty interesting though.

HBJDubs: im sorry no one liked the album (spotify must not care for it either, considering the transition between tracks is broken and "Pslams" is misspelled)

Johnbobb: I liked it!

Saviour track ranking

9. Holocaust (Track #2)
Score: 21 (Average Rank: 7/9)
Biggest Fan(s): Fluttershy_Pony (#5)
Biggest Detractor(s): Sheep007, Seanchan, ChichiriMuyo, HBJDubs (#8)

8. Going Nowhere (Track #9)
Score: 24 (Average Rank: 6.86/9)
Biggest Fan(s): Seanchan, HBJDubs (#3)
Biggest Detractor(s): Fluttershy_Pony, ChichiriMuyo, MaxGalactica (#9)

MaxGalactica: an apt description of the progression of this song

7. Flowers (Track #7)
Score: 29 (Average Rank: 6.43/9)
Biggest Fan(s): ChichiriMuyo, HBJDubs (#2)
Biggest Detractor(s): Sheep007, Johnbobb (#9)

6. Angelic (Track #6)
Score: 34 (Average Rank: 5.14/9)
Biggest Fan(s): ChichiriMuyo, MaxGalactica, HBJDubs (#4)
Biggest Detractor(s): Johnbobb (#7)

5. Saviour (Track #1)
Score: 37 (Average Rank: 5.14/9)
Biggest Fan(s): Sheep007 (#2)
Biggest Detractor(s): HBJDubs (#9)

4. God is Coming (Track #5)
Score: 44 (Average Rank: 4.86/9)
Biggest Fan(s): Johnbobb, MaxGalactica (#1)
Biggest Detractor(s): Seanchan (#9)

3. Psalms (Track #4)
Score: 48 (Average Rank: 4/9)
Biggest Fan(s): Fluttershy_Pony, Johnbobb (#2)
Biggest Detractor(s): MaxGalactica, HBJDubs (#7)

2. Over Your Shoulder (Track #3)
Score: 56 (Average Rank: 3.14/9)
Biggest Fan(s): HBJDubs (#1)
Biggest Detractor(s): ChichiriMuyo (#5)

1. The Last Laugh (Track #8)
Score: 71 (Average Rank: 2.43/9)
Biggest Fan(s): Fluttershy_Pony, Sheep007, Seanchan, ChichiriMuyo (#1)
Biggest Detractor(s): HBJDubs (#6)

I'm very happy to see the user cycle going by the wayside. I never thought the intent of this series was to introduce people to new music but rather invite discussion of albums or artists of some repute. I know we switched to the user cycle from nominations so that people didn't have to be frustrated when their nominations are voted over constantly, but at least then there was a broader consensus on what people wanted to listen to and rank.

An idea for the new format could be to have a rotating theme each week and either come up with a list of albums that fit that theme or have people nominate albums that fit the theme and choose the top nomination. This would also allow people to plan ahead if they will want to participate in that week knowing what the theme will be ahead of time.

ZaziGuado posted...

I'm very happy to see the user cycle going by the wayside. I never thought the intent of this series was to introduce people to new music but rather invite discussion of albums or artists of some repute. I know we switched to the user cycle from nominations so that people didn't have to be frustrated when their nominations are voted over constantly, but at least then there was a broader consensus on what people wanted to listen to and rank.

An idea for the new format could be to have a rotating theme each week and either come up with a list of albums that fit that theme or have people nominate albums that fit the theme and choose the top nomination. This would also allow people to plan ahead if they will want to participate in that week knowing what the theme will be ahead of time.

That was another option I was considering. Like, this will be alt. rock week and this will be music by women week and this will be 1980s week. But I kind of want to do it by month so we don't have to do this every single week.

And at least these options can have flexibility instead of a rigid 20+ week cycle. If one plan doesn't work as hoped, we can try another.

ZaziGuado posted...

An idea for the new format could be to have a rotating theme each week and either come up with a list of albums that fit that theme or have people nominate albums that fit the theme and choose the top nomination. This would also allow people to plan ahead if they will want to participate in that week knowing what the theme will be ahead of time.

I like this idea a lot. I think the opportunity to listen to completely new albums through these topics is great, and themes would ensure we keep some variety while also hitting big albums and artists more frequently. Monthly votes would also presumably make hosting a lot easier, and I guess we have a few weeks where the albums are already decided so we can get onto shortlisting and voting for the following batch?

Making the change quickly is probably a good idea. Half a year is a long time, and if people are getting tired with what we're listening to, it's better to change sooner rather than later.

Deftones - Diamond Eyes > A Perfect Circle - Mer de Noms > Nine Inch Nails - The Downward Spiral

I like the change to the start/stop date. I tend to do my closer listens on the weekend and this gives me a few days slack should I forget.

I'm fully on board with switching away from the user cycle. As you said, we've strayed too far with that approach, and it'll be be nice to get back to more popular albums. Which isn't to say there's no value in the current nomination process and that I haven't genuinely enjoyed some of the more "obscure" choices (Sunspot, Crash Kings, etc.).

The "monthly" (but really 4 week long) theme approach is exactly what I had already been tossing around in my mind as a way to change this topic up. Either we could vote on a theme or you could pick an appropriate one. Then for the albums, maybe you know of an easy way we could see what qualifies (to help those without an encyclopedic knowledge of, as an example, 80s glam rock bands)? Give everyone 1 nomination and then...1 more for each week they submit a ranking? Same thing for supports?

I'd advocate switching to the new system as soon as feasible after a theme is picked and nominations/supports are done. Hell, we could have Steiner's selections start us off with 90s alt rock or 00s alt rock, depending on which wins the voting this week. Either way, that should be a theme that fits the stated goal.

Best song on Be The Cowboy is 'A Pearl', because Mitski looked me dead in the eye while she was singing it when I saw her in concert

jk it's 'Me and My Husband'

FoolFantastic posted...

I would prefer to make this change now, but we have already determined the next two albums; how do others feel? Should we go through the next cycle and put off the change for half a year? Or should we make the change now?

I won't take it personally if you make the changes immediately and skip Dawn FM as a result. The cycle works better for me personally, but I think everyone else has wanted a change for a while now, so I think the writing's been on the wall for a while; you want to change, the majority of voters seem to want to change, and I used Dawn FM as a popular compromise instead of something I was super passionate about (though I do really enjoy it) so...I understand and accept it being cut to get to the new rules quicker.

Well, if we do make the change, we will need two weeks to both gather nominations and then vote on them, so Dawn FM will probably still happen

Fair enough. Then I have nothing to really contribute here; I'll try to support whatever the new format is for a while, though I may take little breaks as I don't usually listen to albums... going from listening to less than one album per year to one every week for years has certainly been an experience and I'm incredibly thankful for it, but I think I may be getting a bit burnt out & it'll be healthier if I stop clinging to my perfect attendance and skip some here & there.

I've used this series as a good way to discover new music (with a lot of success), so it'd be disappointing to disadvantage the more obscure albums like this, because those often are just as good quality-wise. But if the majority want to make this change, then so be it.

I don't think there's anything really stopping anyone from nominating more obscure albums under the proposed new system. If it gets enough support, it could still be covered. You just maybe have to do a bit more "selling" to get it there.

I also think it's healthy to take breaks every now and then, whether that's the project as a whole or as an individual participant. This should be fun, and when it's not that's usually a good sign to step away for a bit.

Seanchan posted...

I don't think there's anything really stopping anyone from nominating more obscure albums under the proposed new system. If it gets enough support, it could still be covered. You just maybe have to do a bit more "selling" to get it there.

That's my hope. If the top 4/5 get through each month, I'm sure one or two of those might be more obscure if the person convinces us. I want to be convinced into covering obscure favorites, not forced into it because someone only chose obscure favorites.

Yeah that was kind of my thought too.

Like when I nominated clipping., they're not really obscure but I'd think definitely not as popular as MF Doom or Tyler the Creator, and it still beat both in the poll

I'm thinking the new method will be good for bands that are like "oh hey, I've heard of them, I've been meaning to check them out" moreso than the really obscure stuff

I'm down to have some more well known stuff covered too though, like I've really wanted to see something like Tenacious D done, but I haven't nominated them because I had less popular personal favorites like Rusted Root I wanted to see done more

Nine Inch Nails > A Perfect Circle > Deftones

Nine Inch Nails > A Perfect Circle > Deftones

The user submissions have introduced me to some stuff I don't think I'd have ever heard without this system. Stuff like clipping. While I can get behind a change to the status quo, I really hope we don't completely lose the chance to get some out there stuff in. Then again, my nominations have had a tendency to lean towards more mainstream stuff anyway, so I guess I won't notice too much.

Mer de Noms > Downward Spiral > Diamond Eyes

1: Nobody
2: Lonesome Love
3: Geyser
4: Old Friend
5: Remember My Name
6: Pink in the Night
7: Washing Machine Heart
8: Two Slow Dancers
9: Me and My Husband
10: Come Into the Water
11: Blue Light
12: Why Didn't You Stop Me?
13: A Pearl
14: A Horse Named Cold Air

Nobody: This song was nominated way back at my first ranking topic and it was a real treat (which was probably ranked too low back then, but I digress). Even years later, I still kinda love this song and it was a nice treat to run into it again & finally see what the rest of the album was like.

The Downward Spiral > Mer de Noms > Diamond Eyes

I love The Downward Spiral a lot.

Huh, New Miserable Experience is Pitchfork's Sunday retrospective review this week

https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/gin-blossoms-new-miserable-experience/

Compared to the cage match roars of Kurt Cobain, Layne Staley, and Chris Cornell, Wilson sang as if he was serenading a baby bird he was nursing back to health with an eye dropper.

I kind of loved this line.

Ahead of acts like Third Eye Blind and Matchbox 20, Gin Blossoms had recognized a market for deceptively sordid minivan music.

Fuck...those are pretty decent comparisons that never came into my mind. Both of those though have songs I remember fondly because they became big when I was a bit more aware of music.

Its as if the bitter details cut too harshly against their docile image to become lore. If listeners rarely consider them as a tragic band, its because its much more gratifying to think of them how theyre most widely knownas just the Gin Blossoms, a group unburdened by expectations of coolness or relevance, whose meek demeanor disguises some undeniable riffs, and whose signature earworms, despite decades of exposure, somehow never seem to burn out. Some bands are defined by their tragedies. Others simply carry on in spite of them.

I certainly didn't know about that backstory. Doesn't really change my opinions on the album at all. The summation seems pretty spot on.

i have no attachment scrap my week if you want

I was curious why Washing Machine Heart had 600 million streams on Spotify; apparently it became a TikTok hit.

Mitski albums tend to be uneven (outside her most recent which I love beginning to end); the strong stuff here is fantastic, but half of it is whatever. It still works more than it doesn't due to the short length of everything. Her songs are always straight to the point.

Nobody
Geyser
Washing Machine Heart
Me and My Husband
A Pearl
Why Didn't You Stop Me?
Two Slow Dancers
Pink in the Night
Remember My Name
Old Friend
Lonesome Love
Come into the Water
Blue Light
A Horse Named Cold Air

Bump

I had an idea for a possible "theme" though I know this is very specific...

Best non-Beatles Beatles albums

In particular about covering 1 post-Beatles album each from John, Paul, George, and Ringo.

Reminder that the deadline is tomorrow morning (though if people forgot due to shift in deadline day, just lemme know - only 2 voting so far is highly unusual)

Geyser
Nobody
Pink in the Night
Me and My Husband
Washing Machine Heart
Two Slow Dancers
Remember My Name
A Pearl
Why Didn't You Stop Me?
Lonesome Love
Blue Light
Old Friend
Come Into the Water
A Horse Named Cold Air

The Downward Spiral > Mer de Noms > Diamond Eyes

MaxGalactica's endorsement is enough that I'd be interested in giving Downward Spiral a shot, if I'm being honest.

1) Nobody Hits a perfect blend of wit, melodrama and sadness
2) Pink in the Night
3)Washing Machine Heart The bassline here is exquisite. Theres a ton going on in this song instrumentally, especially for something so short. Its amazing it doesnt feel messy in the slightest. I also love the crusty alarm coming in at the end.
4) Me and My Husband
5) A Pearl
6) Geyser
7) Remember My Name
8) Why Didnt You Stop Me
9) Lonesome Love
10) Blue Light
11) Two Slow Dancers
12) A Horse Named Cold Air
13) Come into the Water
14) Old Friend

This is a weird album which I think starts off fine, but really comes into its own by the end. The best songs dont start hitting til Me and My Husband, and theyre almost all very short, with only two longer than 3 minutes. It feels pacy as a result, and coupled with Mitskis lyrics being very sharp, the album feels snappy and as though its over very quickly.

Im not sure its my favourite album by her (Bury Me At Makeout Creek and Puberty 2 are both phenomenal, and I think theres more songs I love on them), but it has a lot of variety as well as having a little more mainstream appeal. It feels like pop-rock, definitely poppier than her earlier music, but I always enjoy artists who I cant pin down to one genre.

1. Nobody
2. Remember My Name
3. Why Didn't You Stop Me?
4. Washing Machine Heart
5. Two Slow Dancers
6. A Pearl
7. Pink in the Night
8. Geyser
9. Old Friend
10. Lonesome Love
11. Blue Light
12. Me and My Husband
13. Come Into the Water
14. A Horse Named Cold Air

I have no strong feelings on this album, I guess I kind of liked it? It really made me want to listen to that Japanese Breakfast album again (which I did and enjoyed more than this). Nothing super memorable outside of Nobody. I'm not a fan of long albums, but on the other side, 14 songs in 32 minutes is kind of whiplash.

Also...not a great start for submissions with the new weekly timing. Hopefully this just people getting used to it (or not realizing)...
EDIT: Naturally 2 more submissions as I was making this post ;)

NIN > Deftones > A Perfect Circle. I generally try to de-prioritize artists that have been covered, but I feel The Downward Spiral is too important an album to ignore.

Geyser
Pink In The Night
Blue Light
Two Slow Dancers
Washing Machine Heart
Nobody
A Pearl
A Horse Named Cold Air
Come Into The Water
Old Friend
Remember My Name
Me And My Husband
Why Didn't You Stop Me?
Lonesome Love

Great opener, very good songs at the end, and then the middle is just kind of meh.

As for changing the format of RtT, I'm on board with the idea, and I would also suggest that when this officially switches over that we have a break week to hash out some themes to cover in advance. For my part, I had the idea to compile everything we've covered so far and sort out their "traits" (so far I have decade released, genre, band or singular artist, male/female fronted, mainstream vs obscure). From there I'll try to identify some areas that could use some highlighting, and then suggest a theme based on that.

I think this will also help resolve situations where there's an artist we as a collective would like to see covered but we didn't agree with the specific album nominated. Off the top of my head, I remember a few people would have preferred Funeral over The Suburbs (in regards to Arcade Fire), and in regards to Portishead I felt Dummy would probably have been more appropriate (although I do really like Third).

1. Geyser
2. Nobody
3. Pink in the Night
4. Blue Light
5. Remember My Name
6. A Pearl
7. Me and My Husband
8. Washing Machine Heart
9. Two Slow Dancers
10. Why Didn't You Stop Me?
11. Old Friend
12. Lonesome Love
13. A Horse Named Cold Air
14. Come Into the Water

Tbh, Geyser and Nobody were the only songs to really stand out to me on this one. The rest just kind of existed. Similar to last week's album, but marginally better because of the two aforementioned tracks.

So this was an album, and some decisions were made. There were hints of things I like, but oh man... If I'm listening to this album as a whole, I kinda feel like I should call the cops to do a welfare check on the person who wrote these songs... This is worse than sad girl break up songs when you think about her saying she wants this person, but not for them to touch her, she's staying with her husband, she's desperate to be touched, desperate to be kissed... like, seriously, wtf?

Washing Machine Heart
Why Didn't You Stop Me?
Me and My Husband
Geyser
Two Slow Dancers
Remember Me
Nobody
Old Friend
Blue Light
Pink in the Night
Come into the Water
A Pearl
A Horse Named Cold Air
Lonesome Love

I'm reconsidering. Maybe scrapping nominations after this cycle is the right thing. Not because obscure stuff shouldn't come up, but we sure are on a stretch of it.

ChichiriMuyo posted...

I'm reconsidering. Maybe scrapping nominations after this cycle is the right thing. Not because obscure stuff shouldn't come up, but we sure are on a stretch of it.

Mitski is the exact opposite of obscure. Three of the tracks off this album have over 300 million spotify streams and she is currently among the top 100 most popular artists on Spotify based on monthly listeners. She has been a headliner at major festivals. She's not a full-on superstar, but she's definitely the next level down.

HBJDubs posted...

I generally try to de-prioritize artists that have been covered, but I feel The Downward Spiral is too important an album to ignore.

this was my thought process selecting it too

on that note, the downward spiral turns 30 today!