Is this the greatest indie album of the last century?

[Insel affe]

Mt vote

 

[Albion Dan]

Not the best, clearly, but probably my favourite when originally released with no label backing whatsoever. Quintessential Indie.
View attachment 46542

Hard Fi. What a terrible band they were. Awful.

Think Pills,Thrills by The Happy Mondays should be in a top ten at worst.

 

[Insel affe]

But this won't be beaten

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I do like the album, however it was nothing new, the style and sound was all stolen from other bands from the early 80s and before, it also becomes monotonous after a while.

But what do I know

 

[Trufflehound]

It really, really, really wasn't you know. The debut album literally has ALL of their best songs. They never reached the angry heights of Christine, Destroy the Heart, etc again. They'd already lost something a year later, despite the commercial success of the Butterfly job, largely based on Shine On. All just in my opinion, of course*






* I'm right though....

Agree with this entirely apart from one minor point of pedantry. The debut album has all of their best songs, EXCEPT one. Destroy the Heart isn't on it (or any standard album). It was released as a 12" single around the same time (may have been on 7" as well, but I liked to feel the width, so only had the 12").

 

[Simster]

Hard Fi. What a terrible band they were. Awful.

Indeed. Thankfully they weren't around until 2005-ish, so won't make the cut when Buzzer organises the 1980s & 1990s Indie World Cup.

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

Modern Life is Rubbish by blur? Inflammable Material is a brilliant call as I have already mentioned.

 

[Withdeano]

Great thread. Much more fun than "Will we ever sign anyone ever again?"

Saw HoL play at Cov poly in 1988. They occasionally hit the heights (Christine) but were one of a number of bands affected by the "new Smiths" tag. Like that someone suggested Frank n Walters - never a candidate for the greatest but "After All" is a tune. Saw them support Carter USM at Brum Hummingbird in I think '91.

Couldn't be arsed to copy and paste the artwork but imho...

Most influential:

The Smiths - The Smiths
The Stone Roses - The Stone Roses

Most underated

The Auteurs - New Wave


Personal Fave:

James - Seven

 

[Arthur]

Hard Fi. What a terrible band they were. Awful.

Are I still believe. Pretty sure I saw they were touring the other month. Can't imagine they've got any better. TSB isn't very good at this game is he?!?

Think Pills,Thrills by The Happy Mondays should be in a top ten at worst.

Agreed. On a similar vibe Black Grape's It's Great When You're Straight Yeah is massively under rated IMO.

But the correct answer is obviously Stone Roses.

 

[hans kraay fan club]

Agree with this entirely apart from one minor point of pedantry. The debut album has all of their best songs, EXCEPT one. Destroy the Heart isn't on it (or any standard album). It was released as a 12" single around the same time (may have been on 7" as well, but I liked to feel the width, so only had the 12").

Destroy the Heart wasn't on the ORIGINAL version of the album, but it WAS quickly added to the later edition. It was certainly on mine!

 

[Simster]

Modern Life is Rubbish by blur? Inflammable Material is a brilliant call as I have already mentioned.

It is amazing how well those first 3 or 4 Blur albums have stood the test of time. MLIR is a tremendous album but often forgotten because of their definitive Park Life that came out soon after.

 

[Trufflehound]

Saw them support Carter USM at Brum Hummingbird in I think '91.

I saw Carter USM shortly after 30 Something came out - i.e. they were already famous - and besides Mrs T and I, there were three other people in the audience.

It was in Apeldoorn, the Netherlands.

Don't know what point that makes, apart from to show that what makes a band popular in one country doesn't always work elsewhere...

As another example, Editors are possibly the biggest band in Belgium at this current moment, yet can only make it halfway up the bill at UK festivals.

 

[Trufflehound]

I saw Carter USM shortly after 30 Something came out - i.e. they were already famous - and besides Mrs T and I, there were three other people in the audience.

It was in Apeldoorn, the Netherlands.

Don't know what point that makes, apart from to show that what makes a band popular in one country doesn't always work elsewhere...

As another example, Editors are possibly the biggest band in Belgium at this current moment, yet can only make it halfway up the bill at UK festivals.

Oh, and Frank Turner's playing here in Eindhoven in a couple of weeks. It took him 5 months to sell out a 150-capacity venue...

 

[Trufflehound]

Destroy the Heart wasn't on the ORIGINAL version of the album, but it WAS quickly added to the later edition. It was certainly on mine!

Bonus tracks don't count i.m.o...

And in many ways it ruins the balance of some records.

A good example of this I think is my CD version of George Best. The original album is astonishingly good when listened to as a whole, and ends perfectly with You Can't Moan Can you? Then some record exec decides to stick half a dozen extra singles and B-sides on the end because he thinks 'more means more', and totally cocks up the whole aesthetic of the music. Whenever I play George Best these days I programme the CD player to stop at track 12...

 

[hans kraay fan club]

Bonus tracks don't count i.m.o...

And in many ways it ruins the balance of some records.

A good example of this I think is my CD version of George Best. The original album is astonishingly good when listened to as a whole, and ends perfectly with You Can't Moan Can you? Then some record exec decides to stick half a dozen extra singles and B-sides on the end because he thinks 'more means more', and totally cocks up the whole aesthetic of the music. Whenever I play George Best these days I programme the CD player to stop at track 12...

That's "George Best Plus" rather than "George Best" (see post #26). I take your point entirely, but it doesn't offend me in the same way. I'd rather have the extra tracks. A lot of people don't listen to the actual CD anyway - they'd be able to save tracks 1-12 in their iTunes, etc as George Best, and the rest under a seperate playlist. They are what they say - a BONUS.

My HoL TAPE would definitely have been poorer for not having DTH added.

 

[Saint Lennard]

Hmmm no mention of "another music in a different kitchen". How Bizarre. Not a bad place to start though.

 

[tinx]

Sorry. This album has absolutely no business on this thread.


Yes, yes it is! By far!
I agree with this though. Although Bleach is proper grunge, almost Mudhoney-esque. Edit: Actually it is a great album, but top 10 is pushing it.

Crooked Rain is better than Slanted and Enchanted, Its one of my top 10 all time albums

 

[Grombleton]

Christ this is a difficult call.

all in the running

BUT

at the end of the day it's this:

All incredible albums. Personally i'd choose 'The Real Ramona' for best Throwing Muses album.

Also another vote for Doolittle.

 

[Trufflehound]

That's "George Best Plus" rather than "George Best" (see post #26). I take your point entirely, but it doesn't offend me in the same way. I'd rather have the extra tracks. A lot of people don't listen to the actual CD anyway - they'd be able to save tracks 1-12 in their iTunes, etc as George Best, and the rest under a seperate playlist. They are what they say - a BONUS.

My HoL TAPE would definitely have been poorer for not having DTH added.

Just checked. It's "George Best + 9" on my copy...

I think a related point to this is that some of today's iPod shuffle and download generation miss out on some great albums, because they pick and choose tracks (randomly or not), and don't realise how much effort the bands have put into making the album work together as a whole.

I guess naysayers would dismiss such things as 'concept albums' and scoff at how old fashioned they are, but there doesn't have to be any concept of common theme running through them (George Best being a fine example). It's just that the songs work together as a team in a specific order, and make the whole greater than the sum of the parts.

Other great examples in my books are Mercury Rev's All is Dream, Spiritualized's Let it Come Down (which doesn't have as great songs as 'Ladies and Gentlemen...', but working together they make it a better album in my books), Arcade Fire's The Suburbs (again, doesn't have as great songs as Funeral, but working as a team the album is just as good), The National's High Violet...

And because Gwylan nominated it, and it would probably get my vote for this thread, Neutral Milk Hotel's In The Aeroplane Over the Sea. Great songs taken individually (Two-Headed Boy would be on my Desert Island list), but put them together in that order and, oh my...

 

[Withdeano]

I saw Carter USM shortly after 30 Something came out - i.e. they were already famous - and besides Mrs T and I, there were three other people in the audience.

It was in Apeldoorn, the Netherlands.

Don't know what point that makes, apart from to show that what makes a band popular in one country doesn't always work elsewhere...

As another example, Editors are possibly the biggest band in Belgium at this current moment, yet can only make it halfway up the bill at UK festivals.

Funny that - I've justed this minute come off line from booking tickets to see Editors at the Dome on 6th Nov. Actually it was this good old indy thread that convinced me to book them - got me in the mood for another gig. Haven't seen Editors live before but have heard they put on a good show...

 

[Trufflehound]

Hmmm no mention of "another music in a different kitchen". How Bizarre. Not a bad place to start though.

Great album, but...

It depends on whether the definition is 'indie bands' or 'indie reord labels'. Most people are going for the latter interpretation, in which case Another Music... was on EMI and disqualified.