algroth

I'd forgotten Doom: Annihilation was a thing. It really came and went, didn't it? I really like those Erik Singer videos. And, really, all of the Technique Critique series (Annie Onishi's breakdown of medical scenes are especially funny to watch).

This man is music's Ansel Adams.

I like that a band with a name like The Incredible Bongo Band is being republished by Mr Bongo. I don't think I own any records from the label but I do have a few DVDs they've put out.

Relevance and quality aren't the same, but they're pretty synergic terms in this discussion. The Beatles' relevance is partly because of the widespread perception of the quality of their work. They aren't a Jazz Singer type deal that lucked out on being the first to a major movement without being necessarily good. Also, I'm sorry if you perceived my posts to be aggressive or in bad faith, it wasn't the intention. I was just debating your point is all. Funny, with all this talk of best albums and best films, it reminds me that I do have my own top lists for both, if anyone wants them...

That's the thing though - I think there absolutely are. If you take on the notion that setting a hierarchy of artists or works is meaningless, then taken to an absurd it means your local indie band has as much relevance as the Beatles or Dylan or something, and that is simply untrue. The standing the Beatles have isn't the result of some arbitrary decision by a sector of the press, it's also the result of artistic and cultural trends, of their significance to a particular culture or era and so on - and these things aren't irrelevant. Likewise, whilst all opinion and taste is subjective, we opine over things that have objective elements governing their form and which respond to a cultural frame of reference as well. Whilst the value we give to each is ultimately personal, that "personal value" is often informed by both awareness of the form or language as well as the cultural framework that governs our notions of taste and perception. It's why for example you'll see general associations of minor chords with "sadness" and major chords with "happiness", why dark ambient tends to be creepy, why music in an augmented scale seems angular or dissonant, and so on. I've never seen someone play Lustmord when looking to liven up a party for example. In a case where you have films like Citizen Kane or bands like the Beatles with the sheer reputation they have, a lot of that can also result in a combination of these elements - the compositional or technical meeting and challenging the cultural framework, or setting a unique precedent within it. In either case, recognizing their position in a scene and then proceeding to break down the reason for their place in that scene can be very edifying when it comes to further understanding or appreciating a particular medium. Also I do hold that the consensus is much like the norm in the evolution of language - it comes after a proposition is accepted, generalized and normalized. The press will try to establish its own canon or propose what albums they deem important, but ultimately the stuff that endures is the stuff that sticks and others accept. Plenty of acts every year are declared the next big thing before fading away a few years later - that we're now seeing people like Kanye West or Kendrick Lamar being discussed as the musical influencers of the 10s isn't just the product of consensus amidst magazines but also one which is supported by listeners and emerging artist who follow in their footsteps and 'legitimize' their standing in the process. For a music historian to look back at this decade and ignore Kanye in favour of maybe better and more politically conscious artists like, say, JPEGMAFIA or Moor Mother or something, would make their work pretty disingenuous and unlikely to catch on as a real consensus or view of the time.

Except for the matter that it is the common consensus and has been for several decades. It is also through it that Bazin designed a lot of his theories regarding forbidden montage or the auteur theory, it's in it that the base of modern cinema and what most new waves across the 50s and 60s were doing was first crystalized, and so on. In film schools across the globe it is studied as a milstone that marked a radical shift in the aesthetic and philosophical approach to cinema since. You look at any half-way reputable list of top films and you will find Citizen Kane at the very top of it, or within closing distance of the top film (in BFI's Sight & Sound poll, held most recently in 2012, Vertigo outpaced Citizen Kane to become no. 1, with Kane stepping down to no. 2 for the first time since 1962). In contrast, which films would you reckon compete for the title over Kane in terms of historic significance, or influence, or setting precedent and so on? Vertigo? Breathless? Rome: Open City? I think the first could be the most arguable but even then... Whilst I agree that influence and quality isn't the same, I don't think this is a matter that can be brought up to the Beatles at all. At the time they revolutionized the pop scene they weren't even at the height of their artistic powers. You can take any of their albums from the latter half of their career and make a case for it as being the best pop album ever made - innumerable articles have been written in that fashion for Revolver, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts' Club Band, Abbey Road, the white album, and so on. By the time they released such records pop and rock were arguably at the peak state of the century - along the Beatles you had a plethora of other bands and artists revolutionizing the scene in their own way, with the likes of the Stones, the Who, the Kinks, Zappa, the Velvet Underground, the Beach Boys, the Byrds, Dylan, Pink Floyd, Jimi Hendrix, you name it. Earlier than the Beatles you likewise had a bunch of artists and stars making waves, Elvis for starters. And yet even in those days the Beatles dwarfed all of them. Doc Pomus, one of the most reknown songwriters of the era, felt like he'd been made irrelevant in an age where Lennon/McCartney existed (not least because they were also a major force in unifying the songwriter-performer role which up to that point had largely been separate in the pop sphere). Like, I'm saying this as someone who isn't that big a fan of the Beatles and much prefers plenty of these other acts, the rest made waves, they made tsunamis. To this day they remain pretty undisputedly kings, even as we're tending away from rock as a hegemonic mainstream genre. I would on the other hand argue that there is probably no single clear response for a "best album of all time" in the collective consciousness the way there is a film or band. I've heard plenty of arguments for the above-mentioned Beatles records for example, but fans are also pretty split over which of them all is actually the best - meanwhile other common contenders include Pet Sounds, The Velvet Underground & Nico, The Dark Side of the Moon, etc. And if there is none, maybe it's best to not try and find one either. I'll just say it's Robert Wyatt's Rock Bottom instead.

It depends, really. There are media or scenes that are so uniquely affected by one particular piece in its history that it can be borderline absurd to argue otherwise. Citizen Kane was a watershed film that first crystalized a lot of the components that would shape modern cinema across the next three decades. The Beatles' influence is so ubiquitous across pop music that it's hard to argue their title as the "best pop band", they simply had that deep an impact in the history of pop music since. It can also lead these examples to become holy grails of their respective scene or artform on a wider cultural level which also further cements their position as the generally/culturally understood "best". And while it can all be debated because at the end of the day quality and taste is subjective, and while they're also seen atop a "canon" that isn't a singular rigid entity across the entire world or even a single *country*, to go the complete opposite direction and claim it's meaningless or completely up in the air is a bit disingenuous because it's quite clear that Citizen Kane and Golden Gloves aren't viewed or approached the same way - nor should they be so. Now, if you prefer Golden Gloves to Citizen Kane, that's also up to you and you're to both do so and defend your position. You can even deem it the "best film" because "the best" doesn't necessarily have to speak of some universal standing or anything. But when a discourse has been created around a certain piece or artist or anything being "the best", that's not meaningless - often understanding *why* it is that they're seen as such can actually be a rather enriching experience when it comes to further understanding a medium, its history and language, and so on. That said, there's also two tendencies I see that I'm somewhat critical of: firstly, I don't think all mediums have a clear Citizen Kane equivalent "best", at least thus far, and yet we often ask or look to proclaim one as the "best" all the same. I think there's no clear "Citizen Kane" of video games and that's fine, maybe there shouldn't be one yet. Which leads me to my second point which is, why do we assume we should think of "best" only on some wider cultural level instead of our own personal beliefs? Boeroer's right, the best is FTL because that's the best to him. The one I'd defend as the best, and which I'd make a Citizen Kane argument for, would be Planescape: Torment - but at the same time it's clearly not anything like it at this stage. Why assume Tetris to be the best when you don't even like it? Just lose the fear to assuming "best" can't merely be a synonym to "favourite".

Not music per se, mostly a case study on Robert Fripp's personality, and really, quite a neat watch. It very accurately describes why he's such a fascinating artist and at the same time such an oppressive personality.

A very impressive resume to his name. R.I.P.

I figured that now that I've published all of my yearly lists for the 2010s, I might as well share my top 10/20s of each year of the 2010s right here: 2010: Autechre - Oversteps Honduras Libregrupo - Célula dormida Joanna Newsom - Have One on Me Yellow Swans - Going Places Beach House - Teen Dream Javiera Mena - Mena Dälek - Untitled Swans - My Father Will Guide Me Up a Rope to the Sky Rational Diet - On Phenomena and Existences LCD Soundsystem - This Is Happening 2011: Kate Bush - 50 Words for Snow Colin Stetson - New History Warfare Vol. 2: Judges Cliff Martinez - Drive Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues Thee, Stranded Horse - Humbling Tides Tom Waits - Bad As Me Natural Snow Buildings - Waves of the Random Sea Auktyon - Yula The Caretaker - An Empty Bliss Beyond This World Tim Hecker - Ravedeath, 1972 2012: Max Richter - Recomposed by Max Richter: Vivaldi - The Four Seasons (performed by Konzerthaus Kammerorchester Berlin / André de Ridder / Daniel Hope) Scott Walker - Bish Bosch Áine O'Dwyer - Music for Church Cleaners Death Grips - The Money Store Kendrick Lamar - good kid, m.A.A.d city Swans - The Seer Fiona Apple - The Idler Wheel Is Wiser Than the Driver of the Screw and Whipping Cords Will Serve You More Than Ropes Will Ever Do El-P - Cancer 4 Cure Swans - We Rose From Your Bed With the Sun in Our Head Bat for Lashes - The Haunted Man 2013: Run the Jewels - Run the Jewels Bear Bones, Lay Low - Occultciti Jon Hopkins - Immunity Tim Hecker - Virgins Mark Kozelek and Jimmy LaValle - Perils from the Sea Melt-Banana - Fetch bvdub & Loscil - Erebus Autechre - Exai Fire! Orchestra - Exit! Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds - Push the Sky Away Julia Holter - Loud City Song Roly Porter - Life Cycle of a Massive Star The Haxan Cloak - Excavation Matt Elliott - Only Myocardial Infarction Can Break Your Heart Mélanie de Biasio - No Deal Goldfrapp - Tales of Us Alameda 3 - Późne królestwo Boards of Canada - Tomorrow's Harvest Pharmakon - Abandon Oneohtrix Point Never - R Plus Seven 2014: Swans - To Be Kind The Crazy World of Arthur Brown - Zim Zam Zim Africa Express - Africa Express Presents... Terry Riley's In C Mali Flying Lotus - You're Dead! Sun Kil Moon - Benji Run the Jewels - Run the Jewels 2 Honduras Libregrupo - Cinco Kasai Allstars - Beware the Fetish Richard Dawson - Nothing Important Angles 9 - Injuries Huck Hodge - Life Is Endless Like Our Field of Vision (performed by Talea Ensemble / JACK Quartet / Huck Hodge) Freddie Gibbs & Madlib - Piñata Widdly 2 Diddly - LISA Soundtrack X.Y.R. - Arktika Ian William Craig - A Turn of Breath Fire! Orchestra - Enter United Bible Studies - Doineann Daniela Casa - Sovrapposizione Di Immagini DJ Rozwell - None of This Is Real The Body - I Shall Die Here 2015: death's dynamic shroud.wmv - I'll Try Living Like This Kendrick Lamar - To Pimp a Butterfly Max Richter - From Sleep Moa Pillar - Humanity Áine O'Dwyer - Music for Church Cleaners Vol. II Lil Ugly Mane - Third Side of Tape Sons of Kemet - Lest We Forget What We Came Here to Do Charles Barabé & Wether - Huh? In Media Res - Triginta Septem Toby "Radiation" Fox - UNDERTALE Soundtrack Elza Soares - A mulher do fim do mundo Kamasi Washington - The Epic Lil Ugly Mane - Oblivion Access Rabit & Chino Amobi - The Great Game: Freedom From Mental Poisoning (The Purification of the Furies) 2814 - Atarashī hi no tanjō Holly Herndon - Platform Aïsha Devi - Of Matter and Spirit Elephant9 with Reine Fiske - Silver Mountain Rob Mazurek / Exploding Star Orchestra - Galactic Parables: Volume 1 George Clanton - 100% Electronica 2016: David Bowie - Blackstar A Tribe Called Quest - We got it from Here… Thank You 4 Your service Run the Jewels - Run the Jewels 3 Charles Barabé - Cicatrices Moor Mother - Fetish Bones Swans - The Glowing Man Angel-Ho - Red Devil Fishmans - Long Season '96~7 - 96.12.26 Akasaka Blitz Radiohead - A Moon Shaped Pool Sofia Gubaidulina - Sonnengesang (performed by NDR Chor / ElbtonalPercussion / Philipp Ahmann / Christian Schmitt / Ivan Monighetti) Danny Brown - Atrocity Exhibition Jóhann Jóhannsson - Orphée The Body & Full of Hell - One Day You Will Ache Like I Ache Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds - Skeleton Tree pilotredsun - Achievement Roly Porter - Third Law Angel Olson - MY WOMAN Full Blast - Risc Glenn Jones - Fleeting Mari Kimura - Harmonic Constellations 2017: Richard Dawson - Peasant LINGUA IGNOTA - All Bitches Die Blanck Mass - World Eater Giant Claw - Soft Channel Sly & The Family Drone & Dead Neanderthals - Molar Wrench Ill Considered - Ill Considered Kelela - Take Me Apart Ama Divers - Shadow Seeking Sun Jlin - Black Origami Björk - Utopia Impossible Nothing - Lexemenomicon The Body + Full of Hell - Ascending a Mountain of Heavy Light Damien Dubrovnik - Great Many Arrows Angles 9 - Disappeared Behind the Sun Chino Amobi - Paradiso Bedwetter - Volume 1: Flick Your Tongue Against Your Teeth and Describe the Present. Iglooghost - Neō Wax Bloom The War on Drugs - A Deeper Understanding UUUU - UUUU Kink Gong - Tibetan Buddhism Trip 2018: Julia Holter - Aviary Sons of Kemet - Your Queen Is a Reptile JPEGMAFIA - Veteran Koenjihyakkei - Dhorimviskha Richard Devine - Sort/Lave Tropical **** Storm - A Laughing Death in Meatspace Niño de Elche - Antología del cante flamenco heterodoxo Anguish - Anguish Kali Uchis - Isolation Current 93 - The Light Is Leaving Us All Kink Gong - Dian Long: Soundscape China / Destruction of Chinese Pop Khalab - Black Noise 2084 DjRUM - Portrait With Firewood Anna von Hausswolff - Dead Magic George Clanton - Slide Debby Friday - Bitchpunk Molchat doma - Etazhi Iglooghost - Steel Mogu Denzel Curry - TA13OO Kasper Bjørke Quartet - The Fifty Eleven Project 2019: Magma - Zëss : Le jour du néant Carl Stone - Himalaya The Comet Is Coming - Trust in the Lifeforce of the Deep Mystery LINGUA IGNOTA - Caligula Hakushi Hasegawa - Air ni ni Moor Mother - Analog Fluids of Sonic Black Holes Sofía Rei and JC Maillard - The Book Beri'ah Vol. 1: Keter Black to Comm - Seven Horses for Seven Kings Freddie Gibbs & Madlib - Bandana 33EMYBW - Arthropods Sly & The Family Drone - Gentle Persuaders Weyes Blood - Titanic Rising Sadaf - History of Heat Blanck Mass - Animated Violence Mild Jenny Hval - The Practice of Love 3776 - Saijiki Swans - Leaving Meaning. Richard Dawson - 2020 Yugen Blakrok - Anima Mysterium Zonal - Wrecked My overall trajectory as a music listener through this decade was an interrupted one following a general disappointment and saturation in the early 2010s which saw me take a step back and return to my comfort zone for a few years before slowly opening up to the new currents much later in time. What I felt back in the early 10s was that the music scene at large, both on a mainstream and underground level, were still figuring out what the next wave was, and in doing so latching on to several ideas and fads that ultimately remained that. I still have very little love for that period, as reflected by the fact that despite having listened to over 70 albums for each year from 2010 to 2012 I've struggled to build a top 10 I felt at all comfortable with for that period. I'm happy to have taken the time to explore the decade deeper since, as I feel the medium ultimately did find its course and I've found plenty to love since. Looking at this list I reckon all years from 2014 onwards are pretty even, but I'd probably reckon 2016 and 2019 landed the best lists. Anyone here have a personal list of favorite albums of the decade?

Richard Dawson - 2020 Richard Dawson moves away from the neo-medieval avant-folk of Peasant to a prog and folk-induced rock with this release, detailing experiences from several characters of contemporary Britain so as to paint a portrait of the sociopolitical climate, of the current-day anxieties that abound today and the likes. As a non-British person I'm sure to be missing a number of subtleties in his writing and stories, but can't deny the power of some of his imagery, plenty of these same experiences translating well beyond the UK ecosystem. Another in a strong of strong releases from Dawsom, which further cement him as one of the finest songwriters of this period.

3776 - Saijiki Quite a lovely progressive/experimental pop album using the titular "saijiki" (per Wikipedia: list of kigo (seasonal terms) used in haiku and related forms of poetry) as a concept and as a springboard with which to fill the album with wordplays, puns, and a cadence across its 73-minute runtime that resembles the year cycle and so on. It's a near-equivalent of Boredoms and tommyfebruary6 collaborating on a J-pop Vision Creation Newsun. Just utterly delightful and creative.

Carl Stone - Himalaya This right here's an album of three parts: the first three shorter tracks features what can best be described as an attempt to stitch together sounds and portions of innumerable sources into a sound collage recreation of the more rhythmic, highly kinetic West African music styles like fuji music, Afrobeat and the likes, all resulting into an utterly insane and kaleidoscopic but rather harmonious pluralist soundscape, every bit as groovy as it is sonically intriguing. The next two tracks follow in this pluralist line but seem to take a step back: the electro-disco-esque beat of "Kikanbou" acting almost as a "Halleluwah" backdrop for the ongoing kaleidoscopic maelström to develop atop of it, whilst "Fujiken (Final Section)" could well be a lost third side to Holger Czukay and Rolf Dammers' Canaxis 5, prioritizing a more distended sonic landscape and giving several vocal recordings a change to breathe and create a rather nostalgic and evocative effect in the dialogue that ensues. The final, title track, however, is an absolute beast: a yearning vocal perfomance from Akaihirume alongside a wonderful set of muted textures that recalls the likes of Coil's "Batwings (A Limnal Hymn)" and is every bit as effective, absolutely beautiful and transcendent. Overall one of the best and most intriguing albums of the year.

Vaughan Oliver, legendary graphic designer behind the album covers for a ton of artists including The Pixies, David Sylvian, Red House Painters, Cocteau Twins, Dead Can Dance, The Breeders, This Mortal Coil and so on.

Maria "Remilia" Creveling, one of the first female pro players in esports, died yesterday. She was 24.

I think Bart was referring to Lindsay Ellis' video on Woke Disney.