That's fair enough. As long as people read it, that's all the motivation I need to consistently update.
17. (1999) VNV Nation - Empires
VNV Nation are the band that sealed me as an EBM fan forever, and they’re still easily my favorite of the genre, as well as the most important and relevant. Empires is exactly what one would expect from the genre, and yet at the same time it is so much more. It has the standard synthesizers and industrialized dance beats, but the compositions are so airy, sweeping, and downright orchestral, and simply can’t be confined to the dance floor. The sweeping melodies of synths sound huge and ambitious, and they are the perfect sound to compliment the lyrical content. While Empires is not a concept album, the songs do revolve around a theme, one that is prevalent in a good deal of VNV Nation’s albums: the quest for hope and redemption, to rebuild that which has fallen apart. Frontman Ronan Harris’s voice is not particularly diverse, but the abrasive honesty and rough character in his vocals pack an incredible emotional punch into each and every song. This is the kind of music meant to both make you move and inspire you. It certainly does both to me.
Recommended tracks: Kingdom, Standing, Darkangel
16. (2007) Sopor Aeternus & the Ensembles of Shadows - Les Fluers Du Mal
One of the most unique and undoubtedly vital artists in the Gothic community is the transgendered Ana-Varney Cantodea, who creates music under the moniker of Sopor Aeternus & the Ensemble of Shadows. That’s quite the name, isn’t it? It definitely drew me in, and I’m so glad it did.
The music Sopor Aeternus creates is extraordinary. Mixed in with her (his?) androgynous crooning and crying is a flooring mix of baroque, classical, symphonic, pop, electronic, and Goth rock tendencies. There are full arrangements here of violins, cellos, flutes, horns, pianos, organs, synthesizers, harpsichords, oboes, drums, and spooky theatrics. Darkwave is the blanket statement used to describe the overall sound, and meanwhile Ana herself describes her music as “music for dead children [and otherwise wounded souls], that is all." I for one am thoroughly aroused. Lyrical themes often deal with occultisms, romance, death, despair, loneliness, sexuality, and transexuality, but the lyrics on Les Fleurs Du Mal are a bit more straightforward, with much of the ambiguity stripped away.
But this doesn’t take away from the album. The compositions are full and awe-inspiring, such as the child choir on In Der Palastra and the mournful violin in Bitter Sweet. The atmosphere, much like her (HIS?!) other albums, is rich with that incredibly medieval flavor that you’ll be hard-pressed to find in any other type of music out there right now, though it is perhaps vaguely reminiscent of Dead Can Dance. The music never sounds amorphous or meandering, as it is sprinkled with minor pop sensibilities. The compositions sound fuller and more elegant on Les Fluers Del Mal, partrly in due to the choir on several songs and the enrichment of full sounds. Ana’s voice is a grower—at times it can sound very ugly and off-putting, but the uniqueness and genuine grief that is equipped with her poetry eventually shines through.
The lyrics themselves, as mentioned before, are more straightforward than on previous albums, and at times have a very bizarre and offbeat sense of humor. Always Within the Hour and In Der Palastra allude to rejecting human feelings, lamenting their sudden influxes. Shave, If You Love Me and The Virgin Queen are about what their titles imply. Some Men Are Like Chocolate is a witty jab at chauvinist male pigs, so in other words, me.
I’m currently listening to this album, and it truly feels like an orchestra in an abandoned castle during the medieval ages, despairingly playing her (HIS?!?!) symphonies of sorrow at midnight. Perhaps Sopor’s music could only ever be enjoyed by people like me, but if you want to hear music you’re most likely never to hear from any other band, Les Fleurs Du Mal is highly recommended.
Recommended tracks: In Der Palastra, Helvetia Sexualis, Les Fleurs Del Mal
15. (1985) The Cure - The Head on the Door
The Cure are known for being the masters of doom and gloom, producing downer melodrama on dirge-ridden guitars and keyboards and miserable lyrics sung by makeup-drenched frontman Robert Smith. Each and every note belches out repellent despair, never inviting the listener in for a softer and more welcoming experience.
The Head on the door is almost the exact opposite of that.
Almost is the key word. The lyrics are still as gloomy as ever, never letting up with desperation and despair. But the music itself is much more accessible and gasp poppier than usual. Some fans cried sellout at the time, but the beats, melodies, harmonies, and hooks are too damn good to ignore. The Cure always had a pop side to them, which would be later explored in singles like Just Like Heaven and Friday I’m In Love. What The Head on the Door manages to accomplish is a collection of 10 sad pop songs that are neither underwhelming nor overwhelming in their short runtime and slightly warmer atmosphere—an excellent balance of pop and art.
In Between Days is speckled with a soft acoustic guitar riff and light synthpop, and is merely 2 ½ minute long. The Blood is rich in flamenco influence, with the lyrical content relating to a drink Robert Smith enjoyed getting wasted on. Close to Me is a quiet sigh in the middle of the night, with a senile upbeat bass line murmuring over choppy drums and Smith’s half-whispered pouts over a waste night meant to amount to something more. A Night Like This is shameless 80s nightlife, with casual sax thrown in near the end. The end track, Sinking, is as close to that familiar harrowing rainfall of melancholy as The Head on the Door ever gets, a realization of life quickly passing by along with slow, desperate melodies.
Amidst the dark, gritty, and angry Pornography and the epic, immersive Disintegration is this unique snowflake of art pop in The Cure’s discography. It is a testament to their ambition, willingness to experiment, diversity, and ability to write damn good songs.
Recommended tracks: The Blood, Close to Me, Sinking
Topic: Ravenheart's top 50 albums v. If I could start again... (Read 56516 times)
