Oops, meant to update last night and kind of forgot a bit. Blame the hangover.
BUT NOW YOU GET PICTURES AS WELL SO YAY!
10. Shpongle – Tales of the Inexpressible [2001]
Back to Shpongle! It might seem strange that I rate this higher than Nothing Lasts… considering it doesn’t have that cohesive flow, but for me it has a higher level of quality all the way throughout the whole album, with a few songs that are just psychedelic perfection. As I’ve said before, what amazes me about Shpongle is how seamlessly and brilliantly they incorporate acoustic instruments into their largely electronic music, and this album is the perfect showcase for it. It also has three of my all-time favourite electronic songs (Dorset Perception, My Head Feels Like A Frisbee and Around The World In A Tea Daze) and while the rest of the album is also great, it’s these three that really lift it up to a higher plane. Of course, I need to be in the right mood for psychedelic electronica, but when I am, there is simply nothing better than this album.
9. Pink Floyd – Wish You Were Here [1975]
When it comes to old classic prog, for me Pink Floyd are the masters. I know they had a different sound to a lot of the classic prog bands, but that is part of why I love them – they wrote great music, very accessible and yet somewhat experimental and unique. They created plenty of great albums, and fans will debate which was best until the cows (like the one on the AHM cover) come home, but I personally consider this one to be their masterpiece. I think it perfectly showcases the different sides of the band – three short, excellent songs bookended by atmospheric proggy goodness, and lyrics ranging from cynical to melancholy and nostalgic that I find to be very relatable and emotional while still being intelligent and at times poetic.