Author Topic: Swans v. 30 years of pure brutality (Read 7274 times)

Ultimetalhead · « **Reply #35 on:** May 05, 2014, 03:37:29 PM »

I don't necessarily mind grating when it's used effectively. Sleepytime Gorilla Museum and Dillinger could very easily be called grating at points, and I love them. I quite enjoyed the songs I heard after She Lives! but had to stop prematurely. Will revisit later probably.

Zantera · « **Reply #36 on:** May 09, 2014, 07:19:17 AM »

So the new album is incredible. I honestly don't see another potential release this year that could top this for AOTY.

ColdFireYYZ · « **Reply #37 on:** May 09, 2014, 01:07:16 PM »

Just finished listening to the new album for the first time. Absolutely incredible, and I feel like it has the potential to be one of my top albums of the year. If my schedule allows, I'm definitely going to see them live this summer.

Now I just need to get the rest of their discography. The only other album I've heard is "My Father Will Guide Me Up a Rope to the Sky", which I really liked. Thinking that The Seer would be a good choice, as I've heard nothing but good things about it.

LieLowTheWantedMan · « **Reply #38 on:** May 09, 2014, 03:22:42 PM »

Quote from: Zantera on May 09, 2014, 07:19:17 AM

So the new album is incredible. I honestly don't see another potential release this year that could top this for AOTY.

This. Super impressed with it.

Zantera · « **Reply #39 on:** May 09, 2014, 05:53:14 PM »

Quote from: ColdFireYYZ on May 09, 2014, 01:07:16 PM

Just finished listening to the new album for the first time. Absolutely incredible, and I feel like it has the potential to be one of my top albums of the year. If my schedule allows, I'm definitely going to see them live this summer.

Now I just need to get the rest of their discography. The only other album I've heard is "My Father Will Guide Me Up a Rope to the Sky", which I really liked. Thinking that The Seer would be a good choice, as I've heard nothing but good things about it.

Yeah, The Seer is amazing. I also highly recommend Soundtracks for the Blind (my personal favorite) as well as White Light From the Mouth of Infinity, Children of God, The Great Annihilator and Filth.

ColdFireYYZ · « **Reply #40 on:** May 09, 2014, 06:00:38 PM »

Quote from: Zantera on May 09, 2014, 05:53:14 PM

Quote from: ColdFireYYZ on May 09, 2014, 01:07:16 PM
Just finished listening to the new album for the first time. Absolutely incredible, and I feel like it has the potential to be one of my top albums of the year. If my schedule allows, I'm definitely going to see them live this summer.

Now I just need to get the rest of their discography. The only other album I've heard is "My Father Will Guide Me Up a Rope to the Sky", which I really liked. Thinking that The Seer would be a good choice, as I've heard nothing but good things about it.

Yeah, The Seer is amazing. I also highly recommend Soundtracks for the Blind (my personal favorite) as well as White Light From the Mouth of Infinity, Children of God, The Great Annihilator and Filth.

Thanks for the recommendations. I think I'm going to get The Seer and then work backwards.

Zantera · « **Reply #41 on:** May 09, 2014, 06:14:12 PM »

That's a good plan.

Zantera · « **Reply #42 on:** May 20, 2014, 08:10:29 AM »

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8NQyDKbGVOg&list=UUt7fwAhXDy3oNFTAzF2o8Pw

I can only agree with him. Well deserved 10.

Fluffy Lothario · « **Reply #43 on:** December 06, 2014, 12:22:44 PM »

These guys are playing in Taipei in a few months time, so I'm gonna use (potentially, although realistically, most likely) going to that as the push I need to give this band a proper listen. Gonna give The Seer a few weeks, and if I feel like moving on after that, I'll check out To Be Kind.

They're mostly playing stuff from the latter and new stuff live at the moment though, based on setlist.fm

LieLowTheWantedMan · « **Reply #44 on:** December 06, 2014, 03:34:20 PM »

From what I hear their live shows are very different from their actual music. They tend to only play a few songs stretched out to really long and made a lot more brutal/heavy. Might sound daunting but I hear it's pretty amazing if you're actually into their sound. I'd probably love it since Public Castration Is a Good Idea is my favourite live album ever probably.

ThatOneGuy2112 · « **Reply #45 on:** December 06, 2014, 04:22:54 PM »

Public Castration is a great listen, if not endlessly haunting and brutal. Then again, that's probably why it's so great, just for the fact that something like it even exists.

Zantera · « **Reply #46 on:** December 06, 2014, 04:27:32 PM »

I need to see them live so badly, but they haven't played anywhere near me since I got into them.

Mosh · « **Reply #47 on:** December 06, 2014, 09:59:09 PM »

Maybe my favorite album this year. The 2nd disc is still growing on me but the first disc is perfect.

Fluffy Lothario · « **Reply #48 on:** January 18, 2015, 07:21:47 AM »

Just listened to To Be Kind for the first time.

Maybe I had to use The Seer as a foundation for getting into the band and getting used to what they're doing, and this album is benefiting from me being in tune with them from the outset.

But I feel that as great as The Seer was, this just lays waste to it. This is possibly one of the best albums I've ever heard.

The fact that I'm gonna see this album, and the precursors of their next, live in two weeks blows my mind.

Zantera · « **Reply #49 on:** January 18, 2015, 07:33:55 AM »

I loved The Seer a lot, thought it was a 5 out of 5 when it came out, and it got me into Swans. But with that said, I agree that To Be Kind just takes it to another level, and is a better album. It has some of their all time best songs like Bring the Sun and She Loves Us. I might still have Soundtracks For the Blind as my favorite Swans album, but To Be Kind is VERY close.

ThatOneGuy2112 · « **Reply #50 on:** January 18, 2015, 11:39:56 AM »

To Be Kind is an overall close second for my favorite Swans album (that I've heard) as well, with Soundtracks taking the top spot. It was even my favorite album of 2014. Fantastic front to back really. I've heard people calling it "a perfect album", which I do express a bit of dissent with, but then again, I pretty sure that I'm stingy with what I'd call a perfect album (I've only heard maybe 10 or less albums ever that I'd call perfect or have thought of as a 5/5 rating).

Quote from: Fluffy Lothario on January 18, 2015, 07:21:47 AM

The fact that I'm gonna see this album, and the precursors of their next, live in two weeks blows my mind.

Me jelly.

Fluffy Lothario · « **Reply #51 on:** February 01, 2015, 03:35:39 AM »

So these guys were pretty amazing. Almost every guy in the band looks like he could be starring in a fantasy film. Gira came out before the gig started, and said he would do so afterwards as well, but I had to run.

The only two songs they played from To Be Kind (other than the intro to Bring the Sun) were Just A Little Boy and A Little God in My Hands, which are the weakest section of the album, to me. Little God was much better live though. The new tracks they opened and closed with, Frankie M and Black Hole Man, were both great.

Zantera · « **Reply #52 on:** February 01, 2015, 07:31:10 AM »

I'm seeing them in May, and I can't wait for it. I only discovered them in 2012, but I would have to count them in my top3 bands. They're just incredible.

LieLowTheWantedMan · « **Reply #53 on:** February 01, 2015, 10:37:35 AM »

I want to see them more than absolutely any other band. Unfortunately that's not easy for me.

Zantera · « **Reply #54 on:** February 01, 2015, 10:54:36 AM »

Quote from: LieLowTheWantedMan on February 01, 2015, 10:37:35 AM

I want to see them more than absolutely any other band. Unfortunately that's not easy for me.

Living in a smaller city can be a bummer. I'm lucky enough to live 5 minutes from the second biggest city here, but sometimes that doesn't help much either, because some bands only play the capital. Do you have any plans on moving to a bigger city in the future? Must be a bummer to miss out on so many good bands. Otherwise Canada seems to be getting some nice amount of concerts, but I'm assuming it's mainly like Toronto?

LieLowTheWantedMan · « **Reply #55 on:** February 01, 2015, 11:14:57 AM »

Quote from: Zantera on February 01, 2015, 10:54:36 AM

Quote from: LieLowTheWantedMan on February 01, 2015, 10:37:35 AM
I want to see them more than absolutely any other band. Unfortunately that's not easy for me.

Living in a smaller city can be a bummer. I'm lucky enough to live 5 minutes from the second biggest city here, but sometimes that doesn't help much either, because some bands only play the capital. Do you have any plans on moving to a bigger city in the future? Must be a bummer to miss out on so many good bands. Otherwise Canada seems to be getting some nice amount of concerts, but I'm assuming it's mainly like Toronto?

Yeah Toronto and Montreal are most frequented when bands tour North America. Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Ottawa, Quebec City, and Winnipeg get bands too although not quite to the same degree. Thing is, my city is also out in the sticks. Closest city on that list, Winnipeg (which is also the closest city to here with over 100 000 people), is about a 9 hour drive away. And they only seem to get bands when the artist is making the effort to tour all of Canada. Toronto is the next closest on the list at a 16 hour drive. So basically if I wanna see a concert I'd probably need to have bigger plans in the cities, heh.

As for moving to a bigger city, I'm not really sure. An ideal situation would be to live in Vancouver because I really love that city, but time will tell, heh.

Zantera · « **Reply #56 on:** May 11, 2015, 04:44:18 PM »

Just got home from seeing them live. Considering they are probably the best band currently active, I am so happy I can now cross them off my "need to see live"-list. The new songs sounded incredible, and remembering how they topped The Seer with To Be Kind, they could top To Be Kind with their next album.

It's a good time to be a Swans fan.

Fluffy Lothario · « **Reply #57 on:** May 11, 2015, 08:08:35 PM »

Maybe the band will make an idiot of me for saying this, but if you look over their setlists from the past few years, they've been playing an identical setlist for six to nine months now. If I was to guess, the next album will be shorter and more focused.

Zantera · « **Reply #58 on:** May 12, 2015, 01:21:39 AM »

Well, the new songs they played were 45 minutes, 30 minutes and 15 minutes, so I don't think so. But this seems to be how Swans have been doing things since their reunion. Before they released The Seer, they toured with those songs. During The Seer tour, they started playing To Be Kind songs, and now during To Be Kind, they are playing new material. They are basically jamming the tunes out and getting a feel for them, and once they are happy with the structure/length/shape that it has, they record it.

I would say I'm 99% sure the next album will also be a double album.

Fluffy Lothario · « **Reply #59 on:** May 12, 2015, 01:39:18 AM »

Their songs tend to be a bit longer live though, so those times could change a fair bit for the album.

Quote from: Zantera on May 12, 2015, 01:21:39 AM

But this seems to be how Swans have been doing things since their reunion. Before they released The Seer, they toured with those songs. During The Seer tour, they started playing To Be Kind songs, and now during To Be Kind, they are playing new material.

Yes, but if you look through setlists from between The Seer and To Be Kind, you can find almost every song on To Be Kind trialled somewhere. They also switched them around quite a bit, some were played for only brief periods.

How many new songs have they played since To Be Kind? I think four? And their setlist has been identical since November. I dunno, I'd be happy to be proven wrong, it's just a feeling.

Fluffy Lothario · « **Reply #60 on:** May 12, 2015, 01:41:30 AM »

Their new album will probably be four hours, just to make a proper dick of me.

Zantera · « **Reply #61 on:** May 12, 2015, 02:05:17 AM »

I agree that normally their songs are longer live, and once they scale them down for the album they get shorter. But, a 2 ½ hour concert, with 4 new songs (I forgot the one they fused together with Bring the Sun) that took up roughly 2 hours of that time, it's still not far fetched that it would be a double album. Maybe we'll just get fewer songs on it. A song like Frankie M being 45 minutes is almost a CD on its own. Maybe the next album will only be 5-6 songs across 2 discs, but still clocking in at 2 hours. If they were to make it a single disc, they would need to scale down the songs so much, that I don't know if they would feel the same.

Still, 1 cd, 2 cd, 3 cd or 4 cd, the next Swans is at the top of my most excited about list.

Fluffy Lothario · « **Reply #62 on:** August 05, 2015, 06:26:34 AM »

I've now checked out everything the band has done since reforming. I'll probably chip away at the earlier stuff over the next few years. I think, just for fun, I'll start with their earliest albums and finish with Soundtracks, Swans Are Dead, etc.

Has anyone listened to their recent live albums? I thought Not Here Not Now was such bad sound quality, it was unlistenable (which is tragic, considering the tracklist). We Rose From Your Bed With the Sun In Our Head (phew) is fantastic though. Most of the best tracks from My Father Will Guide Me... (No Words, No Thoughts, Jim, Eden Prison) are on there in expanded, far more brutal and arguably superior form, plus you have early live versions of The Seer and The Apostate.

LieLowTheWantedMan · « **Reply #63 on:** February 25, 2016, 06:24:31 PM »

https://www.facebook.com/larkin.grimm.1/posts/1284036894947002

I really, really hope this is just a sick joke. I'd like to think Gira is mellowed out and not such a deplorable person. I'll still enjoy his music, but if this is true it is over for Gira. $:-\$

Sacul · « **Reply #64 on:** February 25, 2016, 07:06:07 PM »

I never liked Gira the person, while I have tons of respects for Gira the artist. I hope this ain't true, for it would mean the end of his career. Btw, I'm surprised by how mature the comments are, but I still feel a huge backlash is imminent by the media.

LieLowTheWantedMan · « **Reply #65 on:** February 25, 2016, 07:52:06 PM »

I knew he had a very wild youth but I assumed he had mellowed out and was just an admirable guy who wanted to make disturbing art now. This won't affect how I feel about his music, but reading that hurt me a lot. $:-\$

Sacul · « **Reply #66 on:** February 25, 2016, 09:55:38 PM »

Quote

re the horrible and untrue accusations from larkin grimm:
I am completely shocked myself. This is a slanderous lie. I will respond vigorously to defend my name against this horrible slur. I trust in the intelligence of those who have followed my work and respect me as a person, to know this is NOT the person I am. The rumor mill/"confessional" Facebook post travels like fire- but this one is lies. More soon. This is an utter nightmare. thank you for your support. please spread the word. this is lies!

Let the drama begin.

ThatOneGuy2112 · « **Reply #67 on:** February 25, 2016, 10:15:42 PM »

^That was posted on Swans' and Gira's facebook in case anyone was wondering.

Quote from: Sacul on February 25, 2016, 07:06:07 PM

Btw, I'm surprised by how mature the comments are, but I still feel a huge backlash is imminent by the media.

I'm not so sure the overall response has been that mature. It looks like a constant flood of tweets and posts swearing Swans off as a band, quite gung-ho like. Many have seemed to have taken it as 100% fact that what's been claimed is true.

Not gonna believe he did or did not do anything, but man, this is gonna be one big shit-show.

LieLowTheWantedMan · « **Reply #68 on:** February 25, 2016, 10:30:27 PM »

EDIT: Nevermind, confirmed fake.

NoseofNicko · « **Reply #69 on:** February 25, 2016, 10:56:53 PM »

Terrible. I hope it isn't true.

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Author Topic: Swans v. 30 years of pure brutality (Read 7274 times)