Elite's Top 50 Albums v. 'Elitism'; The first arrives.

[TAC]

I am not into David Bowie's music by any stretch, but as a huge Alice Cooper fan, I definitely respect Bowie to the max!

[wolfking]

Bowie. 

And Avantasia has always been a band I've loved.  I first got into them when The Metal Opera Part 1 came out back in 2001, and I have been following them since.  Check The Metal Opera Parts 1 and 2, for power metal heaven.

[Ħ]

Still Life is a really good album!

[Ravenheart]

David Bowie is fucking awesome. Good choice.

[Elite]

Great to see more people liking Bowie! I really do love Hunky Dory and a lot of his other stuff from around that same era too.

And for all those Avantasia fans; yeah I suppose I must someday check out some of the other albums. I dig Alice Cooper as well, a great deal. I used to be into his music a lot when I was much younger, but the track he did on The Scarecrow didn't really convince me. Not that it's not good, but one of the less interesting tracks on the album imho.

[wolfking]

I agree, I never understood the love for The Toy Master also, I thought it was one of the weaker songs on the album.

[TAC]

It's not a great song by any stretch. One of my favorite guest appearances of his was GnR's The Garden.

[Elite]

Quite funny, I must have been around 12 when I really loved the stuff he did. Now I'm kind of indifferent about his music.

[jingle.boy]

Frankly, I never was much of a fan of Cooper's stuff, but I really liked Toy Master.

[TAC]

Quite funny, I must have been around 12 when I really loved the stuff he did. Now I'm kind of indifferent about his music.

His output over the last twenty years has not been great. His last really good album was The Last Temptation ('94), although I did like The Eyes Of Alice Cooper (early '00s), but like I said, his last few albums have been some of his worst.

Frankly, I never was much of a fan of Cooper's stuff, but I really liked Toy Master.

It's hard to pin him down, as all of his albums are different, but for you, I'd recommend 1991's Hey Stoopid. It's the best album he's done since his 1986 "comeback".
Also have you heard School's Out or Killer all the way through? Killer contains the original Progressive metal song Halo Of Flies.

[King Postwhore]

I agree, The Last Temptation was his last complete album.  Still puts on a great show though.

[Elite]

Oh, yes. Halo of Flies is amazing!

[Elite]

Well, time for another update! Only two this time, because my #36 wouldn't make any sense with the thread title

38. Gojira – From Mars to Sirius (2005)


This could very well be the heaviest album on my entire list. This album is a beast, from front to back and not something for the meek. I heard someone say once that ‘Gojira is the biggest musical sledgehammer to your ears, ever’ or at least something along those lines and he was not far off. A lot of stuff that perceives itself as being heavy, really isn’t that heavy at all, but merely silly, in my opinion. Gojira, on the other hand, take the word heavy, insert it in their instruments and create some of the coolest stuff I’ve ever heard, as is evident in for instance the aptly titled The Heaviest Matter in the Universe. This album is a concept album with a weird story. In short; earth has been flooded and the protagonist wants to find a different planet (Sirius). To get there he has to learn how to fly from the whales, or something like that. While the story doesn’t make a lot of sense, it still has a hint of truth in it as the band is known for their concerns of the environment. Hell, the album cover even looks like the Sea Shepherd logo. Anyway, on this album, Gojira manages to mix very delicate melodies with some of the heaviest shit you will ever hear. Though it may sound atonal or unmelodic at the first listen, the more you will hear this album, the more different and subtle stuff you will hear. Some of the album’s highlights include the opener Ocean Planet, To Sirius, of which a (very weird) videoclip was made and Global Warming, which arguable has the best vocal lines and lyrics of the whole album. ’We will see our children growing!’ gets me everytime. When beautiful meets heavy, you know you’re in for something good.

Favourite song: Flying Whales
Other songs worth checking out: To Sirius, Global Warming, Ocean Planet

37. The Devin Townsend Project – Deconstruction (2011)


So straight after a heavy album, we get another one, this time one by mister Townsend. My top favourite track from this album might actually invoke more rage than the placement of the album itself. Yes, Poltergeist is my favourite track on this album and I even think that if Poltergeist and a couple of other tracks weren’t on here, Deconstruction might not even have made it into my top 50. Poltergeist, and basically the whole album for that matter, is one of the most chaotic things I have ever heard while still remaining gloriously listenable. While this isn’t Devin’s best, Deconstruction does a very good job at maintaining Devin’s signature style, albeit in a very different way than on his earlier albums. One of the things I can really admire from this man is that he can take lots of different styles of music, yet still keep them or form them into his own style. Whether that’s because of his theatrical, sometimes over-the-top operatic vocals or lyrics or a combination of both and the music, I’m not sure, but he surely does a good job at maintaining his style. Deconstruction is, apart from Strapping Young Lad stuff and probably Physicist, arguably his heaviest and wackiest album. The whole thing, from front to back, takes you on an immense trip, one that you definitely won’t soon forget. This album is overkill, that as well and is definitely not something to put on while relaxing. It is heavy, it is chaos, it is singable, but most of all, this is Devin Townsend and it’s beautiful.

Favourite song: Poltergeist
Other songs worth checking out: The Mighty Masturbator, Deconstruction, Stand

[Heretic]

I've been meaning to check out Gojira and this just confirms that I should.

[Elite]

Yes, do it! Try their other albums too, especially 'The Way Of All Flesh', which is very good as well.

[ariich]

I've never been able to get into Gojira and I don't really know why. Just everything I've heard has always struck as quite bland.

Devy is amazing though and that's a great album!

[Elite]

Well, that didn't really go down as well as I hoped it would. Anyway, the next three are, again, quite different from what has preceded it. We move back to 1977 and beyond with the next three.

36. Pink Floyd – Animals (1977)


Animals, the album that had to be brilliant to follow up Wish You Were Here actually got a lot of criticism at the time of its release. People didn’t like it, found it pretentious and the album wasn’t accessible at all. While I will give them the latter, I mean, two songs over ten minutes and one 17 minutes long, flanked by two sort 1,5 minute songs doesn’t really invite you, the other criticisms I can’t live with. I wasn’t born in the late 50’s, so I can’t say whether this really was a disappointment, I can only listen to those old albums through modern eyes and I think that this surpasses WYWH by a lot. For some reason, the songs on this album just do so much more to me than Shine On You Crazy Diamond and the other great stuff on WYWH. Dogs, Pigs and Sheep are simply brilliant songs to my ears, even though I can’t relate to the politically laden lyrics those songs have. As a guitarist I could always appreciate David Gilmour’s work on this album, especially on Dogs and Sheep, which is probably the main reason why I like this album so much. I can definitely understand why people would dislike this album, especially after both Dark Side of the Moon and Wish You Were Here this is a great change in style, but in my opinion, that was all for the better. Animals is the second best thing Pink Floyd has ever done, and there I’ve spoilt something yet to come

Favourite song: Dogs
Other songs worth checking out: The rest

35. Steven Wilson – Grace for Drowning (2011)


Out of all the albums in this entire top 50, this is the album I’m least certain of of its placement and that’s probably because this is also the album I have listened to the least on the whole list. Stylistically, this album is very much Steven Wilson, for those who know his work, but very unlike Porcupine Tree. It’s very experimental, almost drone-like in some songs, but then again also very different from his first true solo album, ‘Insurgentes’. Well, I don’t really have a lot to say about this album, other than that I think it’s really good and even though I haven’t listened to this as much as some of the other stuff on my list, I’m pretty sure this will stay up here.

Favourite song: Deform To Form A Star
Other songs worth checking out: Sectarian, Raider II, Postcard

34. The Beatles – Abbey Road (1969)


The oldest album on my entire list is Abbey Road by The Beatles. Well, this really should have to go without an introduction, because this is a classic, but we’ll talk about it anyway. The Beatles were a four piece pop/rock band and are seen as the fathers of modern popular music and are usually viewed as the quintessential band in the history of rock. Well, this is their best release, in my opinion, though there is and will always be much debate over which one is best. Abbey Road is good for its music. Divide into two sides, the first side contains Beatles classics like Come Together, Maxwell’s Silver Hammer and Octopus’s Garden, the second disc is where it really happens. Here Comes The Sun is awell thought out track, Because is highly underrated and the thing that comes after that is plain awesome. Often dubbed the ‘Abbey Road medley', the remainder of the second side flows flawlessly into each other, keeping stuff very interesting. Though the entire ‘medley’ is only 16 minutes long, it consists of 8 songs and keep it very interesting due to lots of changes but also a couple of short reprises. Well, tons of stuff has been written about The Beatles and this album in particular. I won’t bother even mentioning conspiracy theories, multiple theories about the lyrics etc. This is just in any way a classic record and a great one at that. The Beatles are an obligatory band for everybody remotely interested in music and Abbey Road was their crowning achievement.

Favourite song: You Never Give Me Your Money through to The End
Other songs worth checking out: The other half of the album

[WindMaster]

Meh. Never really got into the Beatles. But Animals is a great album, although I have to say I like WYWH better.

[Heretic]

Awesome update!

[Dr. DTVT]

I liked your previous update more than the current one, but that's more because I don't care for Steven Wilson's solo work, The Beatles generally don't interest me, and I've never gotten around to sinking money into the PF back catalog.

[Jirpo]

Great few updates!

[WebRaider]

  Deconstruction is really good. I love PF's Animals. That's a nice Beatles album although I'm not a huge fan of them.

 I haven't gotten to digging so far into Porcupine Tree stuff that I've checked out any SW solo work although I'm sure it sounds good.

[Pols Voice]

Abbey Road is awesome.

[Elite]

Meh. Never really got into the Beatles. But Animals is a great album, although I have to say I like WYWH better.

It's a close call between those, like I said, but I think Animals is just awesome.

Awesome update!

I liked your previous update more than the current one, but that's more because I don't care for Steven Wilson's solo work, The Beatles generally don't interest me, and I've never gotten around to sinking money into the PF back catalog.

To be honest, most of the Beatles' stuff doesn't really interest me either, but it's stuff like Abbey Road, Sgt. Peppers and Magical Mystery Tour that I can definitely appreciate. Steven Wilson's solo work is very different from the stuff he does in Porcupine Tree, but that keeps it 'fresh', although it might drag here and there and Pink Floyd is an awesome band

Great few updates!

Thank you! Glad you like it.

Deconstruction is really good.

yeah, it is

Abbey Road is awesome.

Yes, yes it is.

[TAC]

I don't consider myself a Pink Floyd fan, but I love Animals.

[Elite]

So, on to the next three, and then we've had the first 20 albums on my list! Moving back into prog territory with these, I give you:

33. Transatlantic – The Whirlwind (2009)


The single longest song in my whole top 50. That’s right, I consider The Whirlwind to be one song. One great, large song consisting of multiple equally great parts. As with many bands I got into Transatlantic pretty late into their career, shortly after they had released this album. Transatlantic is a progressive rock supergroup consisting of Neal Morse, RoineStolt, Mike Portnoy and Pete Trewavas. This band always makes me think of Yes for some reason, and somewhere that seems entirely logical, but on the other hand they are stylistically quite different from each other. Anyway, on the music. With The Whirlwind, Transatlantic created one HUGE epic, spread out over 12 different tracks, each with their own themes, both lyrically and musically. Though it might sound boring in a writeup, this isn’t really that much of a special album in the sense that it doesn’t bring a lot of interesting or new things, it’s just that this is some very good progressive, symphonic rock in every sense of the word(s) and musically it’s very good and as an album, this is about as coherent as stuff can get.

Favourite song: The Wind Blew Them All Away
Other songs worth checking out: Dancing With Eternal Glory, Out of the Night, Evermore

32. Karnivool – Sound Awake (2009)


Karnivool are probably one of the lesser known bands on my list. They are a progressive/alternative rock/metal band from Perth, Australia and have released two albums so far. The music on this album however is not the same progressive metal as you hear from other bands. Karnivool has been compared to the likes of Tool and their styles are not too far apart. There’s a heavy focus on rhythm and rhythmic changes and great drumming, accentuated by heavy, downtuned guitar sounds and beautiful vocal melodies. If you’re unfamiliar with the band, the first song on the album, Simple Boy is a great song to start off with, as it showcases all those elements very well. Though not exactly a fast record by any means, the band does get quite intense in other ways, as for example in the song Set Fire to The Hive, a heavy riff-driven song. Well, this is not your standard prog, but even though this stuff is ‘different’ in some ways (I don’t really have something to compared it to I’m afraid) it is for the better of the music. If you’re looking for something interesting, try this out.

Favourite song: New Day
Other songs worth checking out: Umbra, Set Fire To The Hive, Deadman

31. Shadow Gallery – Carved in Stone (1995)


Shadow Gallery are a band that have been greatly underestimated for some reason and I never really understood why. Knowing this is somewhat of an obscure band, I thought I would find more people into them at the time I joined DTF. That didn’t really turn out to be the case, but that certainly didn’t stop me from liking them. Carved in Stone is Shadow Gallery’s second album, after their self-titled record with a drum machine. Lucky for them, and for us, the production on Carved in Stone is a lot better and they have found a proper drummer for this album. Shadow Gallery are a six-piece progressive metal band from the States and on this album they really shine. Although all the tracks flow into each other through untitled instrumental ‘bridges’, this is not a concept album as far as I know. Fun fact for those who own the CD; the untitled tracks aren’t listed on the back, skipping a number between the tracks on the back cover. With the first song Cliffhanger the band sets off on a journey through some very powerful and good progressive metal music. With a mixture of ballads like Don’t Ever Cry, Just Remember and Alaska, and heavier stuff like Crystalline Dream and Deeper Than Life the band arrives at the epic of the album, the song Ghostship, split into 7 parts, including a brilliant solo piano piece as the sixth movement, titled Enchantment. Singer Mike Baker was at the top of his game when he recorded the few words he sings in this song, and the rest of the band is on fire as well. This whole album is a great mixture of progressive rock/metal and ballads, great vocal harmonies, good riffs and excellent songwriting.

Favourite song: Crystalline Dream
Other songs worth checking out: Cliffhanger, Ghostship, Deeper Than Life

[Heretic]

Like I said earlier in the Karnivool thread, I've tried hard to get into them but it's never been successful so far, which really disappoints me, as I want to like them.  Transatlantic is awesome, never listened to Shadow Gallery though. I'm sure it's good!

[jingle.boy]

For some reason, I never did grab Whirlwind ... need to rectify that.
Don't know Karnivool
Shadow Gallery ... AWESOME to have another appreciator.  They (for some reason) are kinda polarizing here at DTF.  I got into their entire discography all at once a few years ago (before Digital Ghosts), so it's hard to pick my favorite album.  Don't think this would be it, but I love everything by them.

[Nick]

The Shadow Gallery and Transatlantic please me.

[Dr. DTVT]

I hope this means that there are 4 more Shadow Gallery albums.  I debated having Shadow Gallery on my list of underappriciated bands, but I came to realize that most people here know them, but it is a love/hate dichotomy and I figured giving a true unknown some pub was better than opening a can of worms.  I'd have The Whirlwind ahead of those albums though.

[Elite]

I guess that means you like Carved in Stone the least apart from their self-titled? I am a huge Shadow Gallery fan, have been for quite some years and saw them live twice, but I don't have 4 more of theirs on this list. I can say though, that Carved in Stone isn't the only one, but they were very hard for me to rank as well.

[jingle.boy]

It's inspired me to give it a spin ... which I'm doing right now.  Good album, but (for me) not my fave by them.

[Ryzee]

The only Shadow Gallery album I've heard is Legacy.  It's p cool.

[Elite]

Awesome, enjoy!
Legacy is also very good and I suppose if you like that, you'll like the other stuff as well. I recommend all the rest basically.

[FlyingBIZKIT]

The Whirlwind is amazing!