Author Topic: Elite's Top 50 Albums v. 'Elitism'; The first arrives.  (Read 36587 times)

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Offline Elite

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Elite's Top 50 Albums v. 'Elitism'; The first arrives.
« on: April 04, 2012, 01:37:13 PM »
So, welcome to my top 50 albums ever!

Let me start off by saying it was ridiculously hard to choose the albums I wanted to have in there. When I first started out, I selected 87 albums that I deemed important enough to enter the league of the best albums I have heard as of yet. Obviously this number had to be cut down and this was very difficult. The result is something which might not actually represent what I listen to the most, but what I think of as albums and music that are good.  Also, these threads are obviously highly influenced by what one has and hasn’t heard, so if your favourites aren’t on the list one way or another, it might simply be because I haven’t heard them yet. I always thought I knew quite a lot of music, but coming to these forums has introduced me into more than I could ever have found on my own. You guys rock, let that be known first, as quite some stuff on this list I owe to DTF.

A little trivia for the hell of it:
- Newest albums are from 2011 (3 albums)
- Oldest albums (2 of them) are from 1969
- 4 artists with 3 albums
- 6 artists with 2 albums
- Making a total of 36 different artists

First a couple of Honourable Mentions (in alphabetical order); albums that almost made it, or would have made it some time ago:

- David Bowie – The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars
- Dream Theater – Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes form a Memory
- Dream Theater – Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence
- maudlin of the Well - Leaving Your Body Map
- Mastodon – Blood Mountain
- Nevermore – Dead Heart in a Dead World
- Pink Floyd – Meddle
- Porcupine Tree – The Sky Moves Sideways
- Shadow Gallery - Digital Ghosts
- Symphony X – Paradise Lost

And then the actual Top 50!

50. Opeth – Still Life (1999)


According to progarchives.com this is Opeth’s best album. While I do not agree with that, this is certainly an awesome album to start off my top 50. Still Life, from front to back completely rocks. This was actually one of the latter Opeth albums I checked out long ago, but it grabbed me and still won’t let go. To me, this album has some of Opeth’s signature songs and this is where they really took off into the direction their latter material went. Tracks like Moonlapse Vertigo, The Moor and Serenity Painted Death have all become favourite Opeth tracks (of mine) and not without reason. Hell, I even went as far as naming one of my guitars Melinda, indeed after the song on this album. One awesome, awesome record.

Favourite song: Moonlapse Vertigo
Other songs worth checking out: The Moor, Face of Melinda, Serenity Painted Death

49. Toxik – Think This (1989)


This is one of the more obscure albums on this list. Toxik was a progressive thrash metal band around late ‘80s and the beginning of the ‘90s. Though they’ve only released two albums, apparently they had a large following and did get some cult status through the music they made. Musically, these guys were way ahead of their time. Just listen to the track Technical Arrogance, which is basically exactly that which the title implies. This is some complex stuff, heavy with multiple layers of awesomeness. One of the few things that I hold against this albums is the relatively poor production, but the music makes up for that, by a long shot.

Favourite song: Shotgun Logic
Other songs worth checking out: Technical Arrogance, Think This, Machine Dream

48. Myrath – Desert Call (2010)


Myrath are a very unique band with the current progressive metal scene. They are from Tunisia and they blend typical ‘Eastern’ sounds to their metal, making for a very interesting mix of known and unknown sounds, phrases and musical patterns. They draw their influence heavily from contemporary prog/metal artists and that is clearly audible, but they don’t rip off anything. All the music sounds fresh and new and the fact that they use the idiom of their homeland music also greatly contributes to the uniqueness of their style. For a typical example I’d recommend trying out the songs Desert Call and Madness. Having seen these guys live once made me appreciate their stuff even more. Very tight on stage and a great stage performance. This is good stuff, and in a sense one of the more ‘unique’ progressive metal albums I have ever heard.

Favourite song: Madness
Other songs worth checking out: Desert Call, Silent Cries, Shockwave
« Last Edit: May 07, 2012, 04:21:28 PM by Elite »
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Offline Dr. DTVT

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Still Life is my favorite Opeth album.  Big Myrath fan too (hint hint).
     

Offline TAC

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Never heard of Toxik. I will check them out. I'm not into Opeth, and Myrath just has not held my attention.

But I will certainly follow. Off to a good start.
would have thought the same thing but seeing the OP was TAC i immediately thought Maiden or DT related
Winger Theater Forums........or WTF.  ;D
TAC got a higher score than me in the electronic round? Honestly, can I just drop out now? :lol

Offline Ravenheart

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Still Life is my favorite Opeth album.

Offline Elite

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Thanks for the reactions! Here the second update with probably a couple of more controversial picks. Oh, and yes, Still Life is awesome, and while I really think it's very good, in my opinion Opeth has done some slightly better things. Anyway, the next three here:

47. Firewind – The Premonition (2008)


A bit of an oddball in my whole list. I don’t usually like power metal, but when I do I really do, as is the case with this album. Firewind blew me away with this album the first time I heard it and I still enjoy listening to it. I must admit that after this I have never listened to any other Firewind album, so shame on me. Though, with some music or bands I find one album is enough and I have no real desire to really listen to all their other stuff, especially since power metal isn’t my main focus. Anyway; on to the actual album. As far as my knowledge of power metal goes, this album is fairly generic, but far less cheesy than stuff like Rhapsody or Dragonforce. This is a very solid album and both the guitars and the vocals really stand out. One of the more awesome things about this album is that Firewind did a very solid and decent cover of the Flashdance hit 'Maniac', which I didn’t include in my top tracks, because it’s a cover, but would have been included. Really, I’m not that good at saying a lot about this albums. It’s just very, very solid and good to listen to. If you’re a bit into power metal-ish stuff but don’t like the usual over-the-top stuff, this might very well be up your alley.

Favourite song: Angels Forgive Me
Other songs worth checking out: Into The Fire, The Silent Code, Remembered

46. The Fall of Troy – Manipulator (2007)


Why is this on my list, you might ask? Well, only because this album and this band have influenced my music taste for years to come. The reason I started playing guitar was because I saw this band live and starting the guitar led me to a lot of other music, that have defined, re-defined or killed my music taste in the past, present and future. In a sense, you may say this is where it all really took off for me. I bought this album at the concert and I’ve listened to it many, many times since. Though I haven’t actually heard this record in at least the past 2-3 years, I can still feel confident and without any shame whatsoever that I once loved this band and this band may well have been the catalyst for everything else that follows on this list. The music is very difficult to categorize, post something like post-hardcore or experimental rock should suffice. For the purpose of this list I inserted the CD into my CD player once again and to my surprise, I still completely remember every little thing about this album. Although their latter CD called ‘Phantom on the Horizon’ is actually better, this is where it all started for me and that’s why this is on my list. Thank you TFOT, for forming me and showing me the way. I’m sorry you guys broke up.

Favourite song: Semi-Fiction
Other songs worth checking out: Ex-Creations, Caught Up, The Dark Trail

45. Leprous – Tall Poppy Syndrome (2009)


Ah, yes, Leprous. One of the more interesting bands to emerge in the past couple of years. On this album the band employs a brilliant mixture of (melodic) death metal and progressive elements with catchy sing-along choruses. The first time I saw the band live was at the 2010 edition of the ProgPower Europe festival and they blew the audience away. People were literally talking about them throughout the whole three days and were almost the best of the weekend. Great, really solid live performance. I actually got to meet the band afterwards, bought their CD and got it signed. We had a nice chat about stuff and they invited me to come to their next show in The Netherlands, which I attended as well. Unfortunately, I didn’t get to go backstage, but that show also was great. By now they have released a new album, called ‘Bilateral’, which I haven’t really gotten round to listening. The music on Tall Poppy Syndrome is frantic, heavy and a mixture of different things. Though some people here will have already heard it, I recommend this to anyway who’s on the lookout for some very good and different modern progressive metal.

Favourite song: White
Other songs worth checking out: Phantom Pain, Passing, Not Even a Name
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Offline Nick

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Really nice to see The Premonition in here.
For the best online progressive radio: ProgRock.com
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For a trove of older podcasts and interviews: WPaPU.com
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Offline WindMaster

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Tall Poppy Syndrome rocks, and Myrath is awesome. I think one of the most interesting genres to emerge in the recent years is Oriental prog (orphaned land, Myrath). Love that shit.
I only listen to electro-post dubprog.  You've probably never heard of it.

Offline Heretic

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Offline jingle.boy

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Following.  Not much to comment on so far.  Not really an Opeth fan.  Don't know any of the others on the list (although I like your honorable mentions).  Will be checking out some of the others (Firewind in particular) at some point in the near future.
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Offline pain of occupation

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i just finished spinning tall poppy syndrome bout an hour ago. so good.  :metal (and dude, you gotta get on checking out bilateral!)
the only other album i know (thus far) is still life (also  :metal)
...pumped to check out that toxik album if i can find it.  :corn

Offline wolfking

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Really nice to see The Premonition in here.

This, such a fantastic album.  Can't wait for the new one in May.


Following.  Not much to comment on so far.  Not really an Opeth fan.  Don't know any of the others on the list (although I like your honorable mentions).  Will be checking out some of the others (Firewind in particular) at some point in the near future.

Check out The Premonition man, killer cd.
Everyone else, except Wolfking is wrong.

Offline Dr. DTVT

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I would argue that Bilateral is easily better album than Tall Poppy Syndrome.  Not that TPS is bad (I hate their cover sheets though), but you'll love Bilateral.

I also have that Firewind album.  I think I like the what is currently their new one a little more.
     

Offline Elite

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Alright thanks!

I will definitely check out Bilateral. It's something I've meaning to do, but I just haven't put it on yet. The latest Firewind album, is that 'Days of Defiance'? Then I'll check that out as well.

As for that Toxik album; I'm not sure if you can find it anywhere, I know I bought it off some internet site. There are a couple of songs of theirs on YouTube though, that I'm quite sure of.

Glad you guys like the list so far! More is following shortly.
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Offline wolfking

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Premonition and Days of Defiance are close calls for me, both very different but both excellent.
Everyone else, except Wolfking is wrong.

Offline kirksnosehair

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*following*

Just bought that "Tall Poppy Syndrome" album last week

Firewind is cool, I have all of their albums.

Offline Elite

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Update time!

44. King Crimson – In The Court of the Crimson King (1969)


The second oldest album (but only by a smidge) on my list comes in at the 44th position. Basically, this album has to be on any prog-lover’s list. It is often regarded as the first progressive rock record and therefore one of the better ones. While I’m unsure whether the first part of that statement is true (anyone here must surely know?) the second part proves itself in the sense that I think it is very good. Actually, this album would be almost flawless to me if the god-annoying Moonchild wouldn’t be on this record. Seriously, the other 4 songs are all top-notch pieces that can maintain themselves even now, 43 years later. Epitaph is one of the best songs ever written in my opinion and the rest certainly doesn’t fall that far behind. Oh, and the album cover is one the best album covers ever. If you like prog, this is a must. So really, if you’re on a forum dedicated to Dream Theater, which almost certainly means you like other progressive stuff, this is definitive material. And it is very good.

Favourite song: Epitaph
Other songs worth checking out: In The Court of The Crimson King, 21st Century Schizoid Man

43. Sublime – Sublime (1996)


Well, if Firewind was one, then this truly is the oddball of my entire list. Hell, I wouldn’t even be surprised if a lot of people on this forum haven’t really heard of this band. We move away from prog a little here. This is ska punk and this album is fantastic. As a sort of little fun fact, my CD rack is ordered chronologically and this CD is the first in the rack, meaning this was the first CD I ever got. It was given to me as a present from an acquaintance of my mother’s and at the time I didn’t really think much of it, but as time went on I really started to appreciate this ‘shit’. Oh, by the way, to those know this album, the picture above is not the original cover, but it's the one I've got, a double disc edition. While this is definitely not the norm of the other stuff you will find on my list - in fact this is one of only 3 ska punk bands I even know and the only full album I’ve ever heard - I consider this to be very good. It was one of those CDs I used to put on in my metal phase when I didn’t want to listen to heavy ear-tiring stuff and it worked wonders. I think this is one of the albums on my entire list that I have listened to the most (in total). This album just works wonders in relaxing of just when you want to listen to some music that isn’t that difficult to put on. This album mostly consists of ska punk songs, mixed with some random heavier punk stuff (check out Seed for some great punk nonsense). The best known song of this album is probably Santeria, which is a great little tune. If you want to try out a completely different genre, I wouldn’t be the one to direct you further into ska-punk territory, but as far as I’m concerned, this is a great starting point.

Favourite song: The whole thing, but if I have to choose, it would be What I Got or Same Thing in the End
Songs worth checking out in particular: Seed, Wrong Way, Under My Voodoo

42. Pain of Salvation – “BE” (2004)


This albums brings back memories to a holiday in Spain. I was checking out lots of different stuff and Pain of Salvation was one of them. The first time I listened to “BE” was with my shitty earphones in a bus through the winding hills and mountains of Andalucìa and I actually couldn’t really hear the music. The fact that this album has weird breaks of (almost) silent tracks in between the actual songs didn’t help. I dismissed the thing, but would resume listening on my bed at the foster home where I stayed. It took many listens to grasp the concept and the whole album but when it clicked, boy was I amazed. I can imagine people greatly disliking this album and also people loving it very much. To me, this is just one of those solid records that you’ll always remember as one of the better ones. It’s always good when an album click, but with this one, it was really good. Oh, and did I mention Iter Impius is my favourite Pain of Salvation track ever? Yeah, it is phenomenal. Listen to it and allow yourself to be immersed.

Favourite song: Iter Impius
Other songs worth checking out: Imago (Homines Partus), Martius/Nauticus II, Dea Pecuniae
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Offline WindMaster

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BE is one of the most amazing albums I've ever heard.
I only listen to electro-post dubprog.  You've probably never heard of it.

Offline Ryzee

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Elite- you are not the only Sublime fan on this board my friend.  I was born & raised in Long Beach, CA- Sublime was the soundtrack of my youth!  Very cool to see someone else on the board giving them some props!  Is the self-titled the only album of their's you have?

Offline Dr. DTVT

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Sublime was very popular in the US in the 90s, so maybe the younglings haven't heard it, but anyone my age probably remembers the saturation "Santeria" got.

That said, the other two are excellent albums.
     

Offline Elite

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@WindMaster: Indeed, BE is excellent!
@Ryzee: Awesome! Well, I'm not from there, nor from the same time, so I haven't experienced their fame. yeah, the self-titled is the only album of theirs I have and also the only one I've ever listened to. Do you recommend another? :)
@DTVT: I take it you don't like Sublime then? :P
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Offline Ryzee

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@WindMaster: Indeed, BE is excellent!
@Ryzee: Awesome! Well, I'm not from there, nor from the same time, so I haven't experienced their fame. yeah, the self-titled is the only album of theirs I have and also the only one I've ever listened to. Do you recommend another? :)
@DTVT: I take it you don't like Sublime then? :P

Why yes, yes I do.


They only have two other albums, and I recommend checking out both.  Start with their debut album, 40oz. To Freedom.  It's a classic.  Their second album is called Robbin The Hood.  It's one of those albums that takes a while to get in to- it's pretty weird and experimental and it showcases a lot more of their dub and hip-hop influences, but still has plenty of the reggae/ska/punk style they're known for.  It's awesome.  They also put out a compilation album shortly after Bradley died called Second Hand Smoke.  It's a collection of rare and early tracks, b-sides, demo versions, alternate takes and remixes.  It's actually what I go to these days more than any of the others when I feel like getting my Sublime on, so I recommend checking that out as well.

Offline TAC

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Really nice to see The Premonition in here.

This, such a fantastic album.  Can't wait for the new one in May.


Following.  Not much to comment on so far.  Not really an Opeth fan.  Don't know any of the others on the list (although I like your honorable mentions).  Will be checking out some of the others (Firewind in particular) at some point in the near future.

Check out The Premonition man, killer cd.
Yes, Premonition is excellent! So many classic hard rock/metal influences.
would have thought the same thing but seeing the OP was TAC i immediately thought Maiden or DT related
Winger Theater Forums........or WTF.  ;D
TAC got a higher score than me in the electronic round? Honestly, can I just drop out now? :lol

Offline wolfking

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BE is one of the most amazing albums I've ever heard.
Everyone else, except Wolfking is wrong.

Offline ariich

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The KC and POS albums are really amazing! Don't know the other one.

Ariich is a freak, or somehow has more hours in the day than everyone else.
I be am boner inducing.

Offline obscure

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Nice start Elite...  :tup your first a few albums tricked me into thinking that I've started my own top 50  :laugh:

Offline Elite

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Cool! The next couple will be slightly different though ;)
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In The Court of the Crimson King  :heart

Offline Elite

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@Ryzee; thanks for the recommendations, I will surely check them out!

And then; Update time!
We move away from prog for the next three albums and this may thus very well be one the weirder updates from my list. On we go with the next three:

41. The Dandy Warhols – Thirteen Tales from Urban Bohemia (2000)


You know how useless the term ‘alternative’ is in combination with music? Whenever something doesn’t really fit any bill it gets labeled ‘alternative’ for lack of a better description, as with this album. Well, this is alternative rock at its finest. Like with that Sublime album, this is some great stuff to put on when you don’t want to have a lot going on. This band is known mostly for their song Bohemian Like You. At least over here it was huge, because it was featured in multiple television ads. Conveniently, that song is on this disc, but it’s far from the reason why this album is good. In fact, I think it’s one of the lesser songs on this album. Actually, though it might sound more pretentious than it really is, this album really feels like it gives you more than just a couple of songs. The songs flow into each other in a way that some other bands can learn a thing or two about. The whole album has a chart of flow as well, with the placement of the songs playing a very important role in the overall feel this album gives. Starting of slow and easy with Godless, we segue into Mohammed, arguably one of the better songs on the album. After Nietzsche we get into a more up-tempo feel with Country Leaver and it gradually gets heavier with Solid, the first ‘true’ alternative rock song, whatever that means, and Horse Pills. Get Off then is one of the better known songs, followed by the very mellow Sleep. Without zooming in too much on the tracks, it really feels the band knew what they were doing, in composition of the songs as well as in their placements on the album. While this is technically not really progressive or interesting at all, it does make for some very good music.

Favourite song: Mohammed
Other songs worth checking out: Country Leaver, Nietzsche, Solid

40. David Bowie – Hunky Dory (1971)


It´s sort of funny how much influence your parents can have on your choice of music. This album might come as a surprise to some, but to me, this is a very logical inclusion in my top 50 albums ever. My mother would listen to David Bowie often, and, as we will see further down the line in my top 50, my mother has had a lot of influence on the music that I currently listen to. Without going too much in depth, Life on Mars? was one David Bowie’s songs my mother loves and still does and for some reason, I took that from her, finding the same brilliance that song has to offer as she did, years before. I even got as far as offering it to a radio show (to all the Dutchies, that was the radio 2 top 2000) as one of my favourite 15 songs. It was included in the top 2000 and the story I wrote about it, thanking my mother for showing me so much music was broadcast throughout the whole Netherlands. Unfortunately, I never heard it live, but my father did and notified me of it. Luckily, I could hear it back through recordings. Anyway; David Bowie was an enigma, somebody who couldn’t be understood by any normal means and who constantly changed not only his appearance but the way he would be perceived. He reflected this through his music and while most Bowie fans would say ‘Ziggy Stardust’ (see the Honourable Mentions ;) ) was his best album, this is where it really happened for me. Life on Mars? is one of the best songs ever written and I doubt I would have ever listened to this record if that songs wouldn’t have been on here. In that way, I owe the record something, even though my story was broadcast live throughout the Netherlands. Well, this was the first of probably a couple of emotional (and therefore shitty) write-ups, but I couldn’t make this list without including this album. Thank you, David Bowie and thank you, mother, for this great music.

Favourite song: Life on Mars?
Other songs worth checking out: Quicksand, Song for Bob Dylan, Andy Warhol

39. Avantasia – The Scarecrow (2007)


Let’s see how many people still remember Aniland. I do, for sure, and it was through him I got to know this album.  He had his list of favourite albums on rateyourmusic and considering the amount of stuff I recognised and knew in his list, I was put off by something he had very high in his list. I think this was his #3 album ever and by the time I read that list (hell, I didn’t even know the guy, but I love other people’s opinions on music) I had never heard of Avantasia, or even Tobias Sammet for that matter. Because our music tastes had quite a lot in common I bought this album, blindly, without having heard anything off it and I was blown away. The music is.. well I don’t know. It’s power metal-ish here and there, folk metal at other parts and just straight forward heavy metal in some songs and the album draws a lot of influence from symphonic metal, but the main focus here is on the vocals. Tobias Sammet has a good array of guest vocalists (most notably Jørn Lande) on this album and he himself rips as well. The songs have been composed very well and supposedly tell a story that spreads out over even two more albums. To be honest, I couldn’t really be bothered with that and this is, to this day even, the only Avantasia album I have heard yet. Frankly, I don’t need more, because this provides enough good music of this sort to keep me happy.

Favourite song: The Scarecrow
Other songs worth checking out: Another Angel Down, Twisted Mind, Devil in the Belfry
Hey dude slow the fuck down so we can finish together at the same time.  :biggrin:
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Offline jingle.boy

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Love, LOVE, LOVE Avantasia.  Scard suggested to me that I check them out back in October, but I didn't get around to it for a couple of months until after Nick played Toy Master on WPaPU.  My first thought was ... wow, these guys sound like Alice Cooper, but really progressive and heavy (:lol, oh the irony!)  Shortly after that, I went on my Jørn binge ... buying up everything he's touched (although, Beyond Twilight is still outstanding).  This is a brilliant album.
That's a word salad - and take it from me, I know word salad
I fear for the day when something happens on the right that is SO nuts that even Stadler says "That's crazy".
Quote from: Puppies_On_Acid
Remember the mark of a great vocalist is if TAC hates them with a special passion

Offline Dr. DTVT

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I would say that Sublime no longer fits my musical interests, to put it diplomatically.  ;)

Not familiar with Dandy Warhols or individual Bowie albums, but Avantasia is awesome, liked them since the first album.  Scarecrow might edge out the two new ones, but you should check those out too (Angel of Babylon and The Wicked Symphony).  While I really like Avantasia, I'm fairly indifferent to Tobias's main band, Edguy.
     

Offline TAC

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Any album that has Michael Kiske AND Alice Cooper on it wins in my book!
would have thought the same thing but seeing the OP was TAC i immediately thought Maiden or DT related
Winger Theater Forums........or WTF.  ;D
TAC got a higher score than me in the electronic round? Honestly, can I just drop out now? :lol

Offline Dr. DTVT

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It's really a shame Alice was just on the one track.
« Last Edit: April 06, 2012, 11:46:23 AM by DTVT »
     

Offline Ryzee

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Awesome Bowie album!  :tup

Offline kirksnosehair

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Avantasia  :hat

Offline WebRaider

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Cool to see some Bowie in here. He definitely always did things his way. What I tend to enjoy most about Bowie's music is not any one part but the composition. "Life On Mars?" is a good example of that. Very cool addition :)