Moderately Acclaimed Albums 2019 - Round 1.16

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Brad
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Moderately Acclaimed Albums 2019 - Round 1.16

Post by Brad »

Welcome to Round 1.16 of Moderately Acclaimed Albums 2019... the final week of the First Round!

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 = July 23rd 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. Roxy Music - Country Life vs. Fiona Apple - The Idler Wheel...
2. Tom Waits - Closing Time vs. Screaming Trees - Dust
3. Rush - Permanent Waves vs. Gong-Flying Teapot - Radio Gnome Invisible
4. Hedningarna - Hippjokk vs. The Sound - Jeopardy


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FrankLotion
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Re: Moderately Acclaimed Albums 2019 - Round 1.16

Post by FrankLotion »

1. Fiona Apple - The Idler Wheel...
2. Screaming Trees - Dust
3. Rush - Permanent Waves
4. Hedningarna - Hippjokk
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Re: Moderately Acclaimed Albums 2019 - Round 1.16

Post by DaveC »

1. Roxy Music - Country Life vs. Fiona Apple - The Idler Wheel...
2. Tom Waits - Closing Time vs. Screaming Trees - Dust
3. Rush - Permanent Waves vs. Gong-Flying Teapot - Radio Gnome Invisible
4. Hedningarna - Hippjokk vs. The Sound - Jeopardy
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Madzong
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Re: Moderately Acclaimed Albums 2019 - Round 1.16

Post by Madzong »

Country Life
Dust
Permanent Waves
"On a mountain range, I'm Dr. Strange"
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acroamor
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Re: Moderately Acclaimed Albums 2019 - Round 1.16

Post by acroamor »

1. Fiona Apple - The Idler Wheel...
2. Tom Waits - Closing Time
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Re: Moderately Acclaimed Albums 2019 - Round 1.16

Post by spiritualized »

1. Roxy Music - Country Life (8/10) vs. Fiona Apple - The Idler Wheel... (6/10)
2. Tom Waits - Closing Time (9/10) vs. Screaming Trees - Dust (9/10)
3. Rush - Permanent Waves (3/10) vs. Gong-Flying Teapot - Radio Gnome Invisible (7/10)
4. Hedningarna - Hippjokk (8/10) vs. The Sound - Jeopardy (7/10)
Last edited by spiritualized on Thu Jul 18, 2019 10:32 am, edited 1 time in total.
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bonnielaurel
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Re: Moderately Acclaimed Albums 2019 - Round 1.16

Post by bonnielaurel »

1. Fiona Apple - The Idler Wheel...
2. Tom Waits - Closing Time
3. Rush - Permanent Waves
4. Hedningarna - Hippjokk
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Re: Moderately Acclaimed Albums 2019 - Round 1.16

Post by Rdwdbob »

ROXY MUSIC - COUNTRY LIFE
SCREAMING TREES - DUST
RUSH - PERMANENT WAVES
THE SOUND - JEOPARDY
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Re: Moderately Acclaimed Albums 2019 - Round 1.16

Post by StevieFan13 »

Idler Wheel
Closing Time
Permanent Waves
Jeopardy
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Re: Moderately Acclaimed Albums 2019 - Round 1.16

Post by Honorio »



3. Roxy Music - Country Life (1974) vs. 2. 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 (2012)
1. Tom Waits - Closing Time (1973) vs. 4. Screaming Trees - Dust (1996)
7. Rush - Permanent Waves (1980) vs. 8. Gong - Flying Teapot (1973)
6. Hedningarna - Hippjokk (1997) vs. 5. The Sound - Jeopardy (1980)

Favourite song from every album:
Out of the Blue | Every Single Night | Ol' '55 | Sworn and Broken | Jacob's Ladder | The Pot Head Pixies | Drafur och Gildur | Missiles

Favourite song of the week: Ol' '55

And now the ladies of the second part. I love the way how we began the game with a very young Fiona Apple and we (almost, there were two ladies more) ended with Fiona Apple but 15 years later…


Jane Munro and Leslie Woods (Au Pairs)


Beyoncé


Mitski


Joni Mitchell


Christa Hillhouse, Linda Perry and Dawn Richardson (4 Non Blondes)


Lorde


Eva Hendricks (Charly Bliss)


Jesca Hoop


Kathryn Stubbs (The Clint Boon Experience)


Chelsea Wolfe


Anne Clark


Hayley Williams (Paramore)


Vicky West (Flotation Toy Warning)


Laurie Spiegel


St. Vincent


Kadhja Bonet


Fiona Apple


Gilli Smyth (Gong)


Benita 'Bi' Marshall (The Sound)

Last year we had 49 females featured on the game, this year we had slightly less, 43.
Jirin
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Re: Moderately Acclaimed Albums 2019 - Round 1.16

Post by Jirin »

Country Life 86 - Idler Wheel 84
Closing Time 91 - Dust 85
Permanent Waves 87 - Radio Gnome Invisible 55
Jeopardy 96 - Hippjokk 67
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Re: Moderately Acclaimed Albums 2019 - Round 1.16

Post by Listyguy »

1. Roxy Music - Country Life vs. Fiona Apple - The Idler Wheel...
Going to pass on this one, I haven't heard Country Life in ages. But if there's a tie, I could always give it another spin and cast the deciding vote.

4. Hedningarna - Hippjokk vs. The Sound - Jeopardy
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Re: Moderately Acclaimed Albums 2019 - Round 1.16

Post by CupOfDreams »

Roxy Music - Country Life
Screaming Trees - Dust
Gong-Flying Teapot - Radio Gnome Invisible
The Sound - Jeopardy
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Re: Moderately Acclaimed Albums 2019 - Round 1.16

Post by Safetycat »

2. Country Life > 5. The Idler Wheel Is Wiser Than the Driver of the Screw and Whipping Cords Will Serve You More Than Ropes Will Ever Do
1. Closing Time > 4. Dust
3. Permanent Waves > 7. Flying Teapot - Radio Gnome Invisible
6. Hippjokk > 8. Jeopardy

Country Life - I remember this being one of my Dad's albums. The cover sticks in the mind a bit. Music is excellent too.
The Idler Wheel... - Great but loses out to albums I just like better
Closing Time - One of my favourites, a unique Waits experience since he immediately moved away from this style. Raw and emotional.
Dust - You can definitely tell why these guys were influential. Excellent jams.
Permanent Waves - Rush are equal parts epic and ridiculous. This has both in spades, but I find it very enjoyable.
Flying Teapot - I'd actually heard The Pot Head Pixies after finding it in a bundle of music I got off a friend... and then promptly deleted it. The album is actually quite interesting but never becomes amazing to me.
Hippjokk - Great atmosphere
Jeopardy - Only lackluster part of this week for me. I love the genre but this album just never managed to hook me in.
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Re: Moderately Acclaimed Albums 2019 - Round 1.16

Post by Bang Jan »

3 | Roxy Music | Country Life
5 | Fiona Apple | The Idler Wheel...

4 | Tom Waits | Closing Time
8 | Screaming Trees | Dust

1 | Rush | Permanent Waves
6 | Gong | Flying Teapot

7 | Hedningarna | Hippjokk
2 | The Sound | Jeopardy

Favourite song of the week: Rush | The Spirit of Radio
"The first word in this song is discorporate. It means to leave your body."
Brad
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Re: Moderately Acclaimed Albums 2019 - Round 1.16

Post by Brad »

My picks:
1. Roxy Music - Country Life vs. Fiona Apple - The Idler Wheel...
2. Tom Waits - Closing Time vs. Screaming Trees - Dust
3. Rush - Permanent Waves vs. Gong-Flying Teapot - Radio Gnome Invisible
4. Hedningarna - Hippjokk vs. The Sound - Jeopardy

Thanks!
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Re: Moderately Acclaimed Albums 2019 - Round 1.16

Post by jamieW »

Roxy Music - Country Life
Tom Waits - Closing Time
Gong - Flying Teapot
The Sound - Jeopardy

Favorite album I couldn't vote for: Hedningarna - Hippjokk
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Rob
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Re: Moderately Acclaimed Albums 2019 - Round 1.16

Post by Rob »

8. Roxy Music – Country Life
All right, after some early resistance I have to admit I might like some of Roxy Music’s stuff now. At least Country Life. Not quite as overly slick as some of their albums, this one takes some pride in rocking out. It contains at least one incredible song: The Thrill of It All, which might easily be my favorite song of their discography (with only competition of their affecting cover of John Lennon’s Jealous Guy). Although nothing on the album quite reaches the highs of that opener the rest is pretty consistently a good listen. Every now and then things get a bit too slicky and cocky for my tastes, but even that doesn’t usually last a full song.

7. The Sound – Jeopardy
After From the Lion’s Mouth caught me by surprise earlier in this game I was looking forward to checking out Jeopardy. This one doesn’t have quite the same impact. It is a good album, but it seems more straightforward and basic to me, although I think that is the same reason many people actually prefer this one. Something is to be said for it and nothing on here strikes me as bad, but only a couple of tracks stood out: Heartland, Hour of Need and the title song.

6. Rush – Permanent Waves
Few bands manage to be as much maligned as beloved as Rush. They combine a healthy dose of skill with a deep-seated fondness for unironic cheesiness. Combine that with the fact that they work in a music style that is extremely unfashionable (and in a way already was when they were popular), that however they clearly pour their heart and soul in. All this gave them a dedicated fanbase and critical derision. To me, it makes them likeable.

I just find it hard to say something bad about Rush, except that the lyrics are better ignored. Otherwise, Permanent Waves is corniness made divine. There is something in Geddy Lee’s singing that is maybe not great in a traditional sense, but makes me happy. And musically they just don’t let up. Many hard rock bands try to sound the loudest, Rush tries to sound the most grand. It’s lengthy solo’s hit like a huge wave of pleasantly warm water: overwhelming yet joyous. The first three tracks in particular are as good as Rush get, like the best cheeseburger people tell you not to eat, yet you feel great that you have done it anyway.

5. Gong – Radio Gnome Invisible: Flying Tea Pot
I mean, you’ve read the title, you expect something weird. It turns out it wasn’t only weird, but exactly the British, fantasy type of weird I expected. This is prog-rock silliness that knows it is silly and the tongue is firmly in cheek. In prog-terms this doesn’t quite aim (and certainly doesn’t reach) the majesty of, say Camel or Yes, and to say it doesn’t get to the emotional levels of peak-Pink Floyd is completely besides the point. This is disjointed prog, meant to transport you to cloud cuckoo land and throw you out the again.

This is an album I need to be in the mood for and as it happens during the two listens I once was in the mood for it (the first time) and once wasn’t (the second time; unusual because the second time around I know what to expect and try to find the right moment for it). In the right mood I found this wonderful wacky stuff, in the wrong mood it annoyed me. But whatever the mood, I’m glad albums like this were made, because they make life seem a little less glum or predictable.

4. Screaming Trees – Dust
Mark Lanegan is one of the most dependable vocalists of the last 20-30 years. He has a great voice and his many appearances left and right always elevate a song. Screaming Trees was one of his bands and although it doesn’t sound particularly like grunge to me, it was lumped in the genre for seemingly no other reason that it was rock from the mid-nineties. This is far more subdued, mostly, than a lot of grunge. Apart from a few louder tracks this is hard rock with a sort of laidback sound. It is one of those albums that is constantly good, even very good, but I just miss any truly great tracks. That said, there is a subtly here that could uncover greatness with more listens.

3. 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
By album number 4 (what is keeping number five?) had basically taken the jazz elements that are present in all her albums and only kept the most disruptive elements of the genre. This almost feel like a free jazz take on the singer-songwriter genre, but the lyrics are too well-thought out to sustain that illusion. No, every jump and turn in sound is calculated and worked to fit the lyrics and the singing. It makes for an exciting record that can only really be listened to if you are completely willing to focus on every aspect of the songs, including those lyrics. But if you do, you get one of the best albums of the decade. Hot Knife – ironically the least literary song here – is also one becoming one of my favorite albums of the decade.

2. Tom Waits – Closing Time
I like how Safetycat notes that Tom Waits moved away from this style. I don’t think he didn’t for some years. It’s just that his voice got ruined very quickly after this. With his more conventional (still in a Bob Dylan kind of way) vocals here it immediately sounds like a more regular singer-songwriter record. Yet still one of the best of its sort. This is just great song after great song, enough to make it still stand out in Waits’ scarily consistent discography. That and the voice of course. Ah, those were days of roses.

1. Hedningarna – Hippjokk
Yes! After these folks made my life a lot better with their Pornopolka, which appeared in Biggest Fan recently, it turns out they can also do great albums. Who would have thought that one of my favorite discoveries of the year would be a loopy take on yolk, a sort of Sami folk music? Heck, I didn’t even know what yolk was until recently. On this album they mix it with everything. The first and last track are basically electronic dance tracks, with jaw harps and other instruments that are unusual for the genre. Dufwa has more than a hint of death metal, if only in the vocals. But best of all are Kina and Skåne, which work the traditional music up to a fever pitch. The energy is what keeps it all together; this album doesn’t slack off.
What’s it all about? I don’t know. Who cares?


A simple overview of my votes:

1. Roxy Music - Country Life vs. Fiona Apple - The Idler Wheel...
2. Tom Waits - Closing Time vs. Screaming Trees - Dust
3. Rush - Permanent Waves vs. Gong-Flying Teapot - Radio Gnome Invisible
4. Hedningarna - Hippjokk vs. The Sound - Jeopardy

Last note: outside of one week I actually managed to listen to each album twice this year. I always try, but never managed it that well before.
Last edited by Rob on Tue Jul 23, 2019 3:11 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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andyd1010
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Re: Moderately Acclaimed Albums 2019 - Round 1.16

Post by andyd1010 »

The Idler Wheel...
Brad
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Re: Moderately Acclaimed Albums 2019 - Round 1.16

Post by Brad »

About 1-1/2 hours left to vote!
Brad
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Re: Moderately Acclaimed Albums 2019 - Round 1.16

Post by Brad »

18 total voters this week:
acroamor
andyd1010
Bang Jan
bonnielaurel
Brad
CupOfDreams
DaveC
FrankLotion
Honorio
jamieW
Jirin
Listyguy
madzong
Rdwdbob
Rob
Safetycat
spiritualized
StevieFan13

Winners:
1. Fiona Apple - The Idler Wheel... over Roxy Music - Country Life 9-8
2. Tom Waits - Closing Time over Screaming Trees - Dust 10-6
3. Rush - Permanent Waves over Gong-Flying Teapot - Radio Gnome Invisible 11-4
4. The Sound - Jeopardy over Hedningarna - Hippjokk 10-5

Time to start Round Two!!!
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