Author Topic: MikeMangioy's top 50 albums v.2: v.2 - v. The top ten  (Read 46628 times)

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Offline ThatOneGuy2112

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You just made a terrible mistake, son. :lol

Yeah, it's clear that it was trying a little too hard to be a "return to form" for them, which I wouldn't have minded had the song-writing and production been better. The only song I'd consider great on here would be All Nightmare Long, while most of the rest tends to fall flat.

Offline Sacul

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Metallica wouldn't even enter my top 200  :P

Online Anguyen92

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I for one, when the day comes for me to do a Top 50 albums, have Death Magnetic on my list and the only Metallica album on that list.  I wouldn't put at 41.  Maybe a tad lower than that.  Is it Metallica's best album?  No, not by a long shot.  That said, I enjoyed a lot from start to finish for the most part.  I wouldn't say that for the other albums, except Master of Puppets.  That Was Just Your Life and The End of the Line was a great one-two punch to kick it off and I enjoy Suicide and Redemption a great amount moreso than the general consensus, especially during the solos parts between Hetfield and Hammett.

Offline 425

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I won't jump down your throat over DM ;-) . I probably wouldn't put it this high, but it is one of my favorite Metallica albums, honestly. It's a mature, well-written record.
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Offline mikemangioy

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Posting update now because later I can't  :laugh:


# 40: Green Day - Dookie
1994 - Punk Rock - California, USA

Continuing with lately-disappointing bands, Green Day. A band that I’ve been following from 10 years, and that I’ve at least respected up until Uno, Dos and Trè came out (although Dos was actually pretty good). Oh well, we’re not looking at those abominations, nope, we’re looking at probably the most well-viewed album by the band, Dookie, which came out in 1994, and had a big success, thanks to tracks like Basket Case and When I Come Around.

This one is a punk rock classic, that I still pop up once in a while these days (even though I’m currently into totally different music) because it brings me nostalgia and a good time too. Sometimes if I come out of listening something pretty complicated like BTBAM and I need something simple, this is my go-to album. After all this is a trio playing simple power chords over a catchy melody for 2/3 minutes, and it’s still great and consistent as a 20 minute piece in 19/16 with an ambient/drone influence. Although the two are pretty much uncomparable. Enoguh with the chitty-chatter, on with the record!

Burnout starts the whole thing with a fast piece and a catchy chorus, with a notable drum solo in the middle. Trè Cool cracks me up in a lot of ways. Having A Blast is a bit darker and bitter in tone, whilist Chump features a riff that reminds me of Foo Fighters. It includes a cool buildup towards the end, I love these moments. Following there are two notable bass-songs, Longview, which has one of the coolest bass riffs that I know about (written under LSD), and also pretty funny lyrics – this one is really capable of bringing me back to my childhood, when I used to obsess to Bullet In A Bible and a lot of other live performances and bootlegs. The other bass-song is Welcome To Paradise, which is actually a rerecorded version (the first one appearing in the previous album Kerplunk); it’s a classic and the instrumental section once again features a really cool bass riff, wacky stuff. Pulling Teeth is a pure Beatles song, with backing vocals and happy-sounding vocal lines about a love story. Next is probably Green Day’s most famous tune, Basket Case. Whilist some of their hits actually grown off of me (I’m looking at Holiday and Wake Me Up When September Ends), this one managed to survive, possibly because it’s just a good song all around, it has a raw energy factor, and it’s quick. She, I’m kinda partial on. I don’t like the verses but the chorus is nothing short of epic, actually. No big deal since each is pretty short. Sassafras Roots has cool melodies, I like the backing vocals on that. When I Come Around is another famous one, I like that it’s relatively heavy but still so poppy and catchy, the video is also pretty sick. Coming Clean is about Billie Joe’s relationship with his sexuality (he used to be bisex, I’m actually finding out as I write :o), it’s short and once again catchy. Fuck, this album is so consistent I actually have a hard time remembering which song is which. Is that good or bad? Emenius Sleepus features lyrics by Mike Dirnt, I think it’s my least favorite, here the album kinda begins to be repetitive, thankfully the next few tracks are pretty unique. In fact In The End finally brings the speed back, with a really cool breakdown/buildup thing that really makes the song shine, DAT snare drum work by Trè. He’s awesome! The last track F.O.D. is probably my favorite, it starts off with an acoustic guitar (possibly a very cheap acoustic guitar), to then explode with a pretty heavy electric chorus (the same as the acoustic part), the song really works on both ways. And then the album closes here… if it weren’t for All By Myself. A song completely performed by Trè, who sings about thinking about someone while he is alone. Yes, it’s what it sounds like.

So, Dookie. Awesome, short, quick, heavy at times, fun and catchy. Oh why won’t people look at pre-American Idiot material…

Favorites: Burnout, Longview, Welcome To Paradise, In The End, F.O.D.
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Offline Scorpion

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Meh.

I used to like Green Day, but even then this one never really spoke to me.
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Offline mikemangioy

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# 39: System Of A Down - Hypnotize
2005 - Alternative/Experimental Metal - California, USA/Armenia

With recent news that this band is starting to write new material, I’m more than excited to bring you a return from v1, Hypnoitze.

SOAD are an American-armenian metal group, that doesn’t actually fall under subgenres, I can’t see them well in any type of subgenres, and they're cool with that, they are their own genre. This is the band “latest” album (it came out in 2005, that’s ten years ago!), and it features a wide variety of style, much like the other records, but this time it’s incentred on a more melodic approach, with cool melodies and epic anthemic choruses; this is also a “part 2” album, since it came out 6 months after its counterpart, Mezmerize, album of the same melodic idea, but IMO it’s performed a lot better in here. The songs sound fluent, and every has a little melody that gets stuck in your head as soon as you hear it. I also love the fact that this band went from being 1 vocalist, to 2. I love the fact that two pretty different voices, Serj Tankian’s and Daron Malakian’s, together, they sound so awesome and quite unique too. Another cool thing about this record is that the riffs are pretty creative, and intriguing. There’s something strange about them that make ‘em really really cool. And one other thing, this album has quite the flow – it’s quite a pretty perfect tracklist.

Starting with Attack, the album opens with a frantic riff followed by melodic verses. Overall Attack is pretty dynamic, as it explodes in the chorus after somewhat of a buildup from the calm verses. Dreaming is one of my favorites, featuring soaring and epic melodies with incredible lyrics. “Someone kick me out of my mind, I hate these thoughts I can’t deny”. Kill Rock ‘N Roll is the Radio/Video of this album, a fun song about a gruesomely funny accident (Daron killed a rabbit while he was pulling up in the parking lot  :rollin), not the best, but it’s a nice listen. The title track Hypnotize takes us to esotic places (an atmosphere not new to this band), with a great melodic approach, and a really groovy bridge section. Stealing Society is probably the heaviest piece, featuring cool counter-vocals (*riff* HEY *riff* ALRIGHT *riff* HEY *shorter riff* ALRIGHT *riff* *pause* *heaviest riff in the world*) that make the song one of my favorites in the record, and possibly one of the better ones overall, although I admit the bridge vocals are a bit annoying. Tentative is another one of those fucking heavy but so beautiful tracks, another anti-war song for the band, and probably one of the most memorable (although you can’t be more memorable than Boom. That’s THE anti-war song for me.). That bridge is stunning, I cry a little each time I listen to it  :heart. U-Fig is another fun piece, featuring an insane vocal performance by Serj: “Youuu and mee should go outside and eatemeatemeatemeatem”, not to mention that calm bridge that scares the fuck out of you each time bursting out into a screaming section. A truly underrated track that showcases that the band still has some madness, which is possibly what they’re most known for. Holy Mountains is yet another song about the Armenian Genocide in the band’s discography (the other ones are P.L.U.C.K. and X). This is an emotionally heavy song, that truly showcases the rage of Armenians during and after the genocide, when they still don’t have the recognition of it by the Turkish people. SOAD are so pissed that they are touring about that. I think this song focuses on that problem. Anyways, once again, epic melodies and one hell of a bridge. When I said that U-Fig was the “mad one” of the album, nope. This is the one. Vicinity Of Obscenity is an hilarious critique towards all the sex in media these days, and how there’s too much of it everywhere. Honestly, this is one of the best things ever in the history of metal. I mean where else could you headbang to “BANANABANANABANANABANANABANANANA”? Just epicness. The last chorus actually sounds serious enough, and to me, that’s when you get the whole sense of the song. So, here starts the weak part of the record, even though it’s still great. She’s Like Heroin is a full Daron-fest, a cute and actually kind of creepy song about hookers and pushers, in a pretty rude and direct way.
“I need someone to make some cash selling.. Ass! (selling ass for heroin) “
It’s an ok song, but it doesn’t compare to the rest of the album, and I honestly could’ve lived without it. Continuing with Daron-songs (I wonder what Serj does in these tracks, other than backing vocals), Lonely Day is my least favorite piece in the record. That’s only because of its lyrics. Terrible. Done on purpose? Possibly. Who knows, but still, it’s a pretty ordinary ballad with a solo (unusual thing for SOAD), so nope, doesn’t hit me at all. On the other hand, Soldier Side might be the most emotional song written by the band. It’s a melanchonic power ballad about, of course, war and bad stuff about it, namely about young soldiers fighting far away from their home. We had a preview of this song on the previous album, using it as an intro; the preview in the full song
is actually the outro, so there’s a nice feeling of coming full circles, even though Mezmerize and Hypnotize are not concept albums. Or at least I think so. Anyways, Soldier Side is truly beautiful, one of the best tracks.

So yep, this is my favorite SOAD album, I really have nothing more to say. If you like a nice mixture of crazy heavy stuff and epic, melodic melodicness, I recommend this for you, I think you’d like it a lot. Although the vocals may be a little annoying, it’s up to you.

Tracks favorites tracksevorites: Dreaming, Hypnotize, Stealing Society, U-Fig, Tentative, Soldier Side, Holy Mountains
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Offline Scorpion

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Yes yes yes yes yes! My favourite album of all time. Ridiculously perfect.

Soldier Side :hearts:
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Offline Sacul

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Yes yes yes yes yes! My favourite album of all time. Ridiculously perfect.
I thought that one was DT's Terria :P .

Offline Scorpion

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That's #2.

I had that as #1 on my v2 Top 50, but I had made a point of not including any albums that I had already written writeups for on my v1, and that album has held that spot for more than half a decade now.
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Offline sneakyblueberry

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Dookie is a fantastic album.  Good choice.

Offline mikemangioy

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Re: MikeMangioy's top 50 albums...AGAIN?! (v2 list) - v. Mermaids are metal
« Reply #81 on: April 09, 2015, 06:20:44 AM »
Yes yes yes yes yes! My favourite album of all time. Ridiculously perfect.

Finally some love for this album!


Moving on:



# 38: Haken - Aquarius
2010 - Progressive Rock/Metal - UK

This next record is the debut album from what I consider to be theprog band of my generation (along with BTBAM). Haken are a band from London, Great Britain – and I’m pretty sure you know them if you’re on this forum. This band is capable of summing up prog in its every aspect, even though it took sometime for them to grow completely into the perfect state they are in now. Here folks, we have everything. Heavy guitars, sometimes even djenty 8th string riffs, epic shivering pieces with amazing and touching melodies, and a nice touch of silliness and wackiness which give the band a memorable aspect. The last aspect is what characterizes Aquarius best.

Aquarius, not only is one of the best sounding debut albums I’ve ever heard, it’s also over the top and cheesy in its every aspect, but it’s what makes it so great. The music, as I’ve said, it’s serious and menacing one moment, epic in the other, laughable (in a good way) the other. When I say cheesy I say it because it’s a concept album about a mermaid saving the world. No, I’m not kidding. Seriously, when I first read that, I cringed. But in the end, the cheesiness is never that much, and it’s still quite a good listen.

The album opens with The Point Of No Return which is possibly Haken’s craziest tune along with Cockroach King. It starts out incredibly serious, and after something like 15 seconds, enter circus music! I always laugh my ass off each time :rollin. Anyways, it lasts shortly since everything quiets down and the song transforms into a dark and dramatic piano ballad, with an uplifting chorus. But the thing that makes this song so great is the instrumental section: it starts out with a succession of solos from everyone in the band, which cycles, and each solo gets shorter and wackier until everything collapses in a jazzy piano solo. After that what? DJENT of course. Anyways, listen to this song please :lol Streams is subdivided in three parts: the first one being happy with a cool short instrumental section, the second part is funereal and features growls and the third part is just a sadder reprise of the first part. Now, two problems: this song is too long and has unnecessary parts, like the growl section aaand the growls are kinda terrible ahaha, I’m glad they never used them again in the next albums. After a nice electronic/ambient introduction, Aquarium starts. This song is pretty emotional, it deals with a fisherman who captures the siren, and uses her to make money. Selling ASS! Nope, wrong album. Anyway, regardless of the lyrical theme, there are beautiful vocal lines brought to us by  Ross Jennings, the heir of Jon Anderson. After the second chorus the song transform in a happy happy 80’s thing that reminds me a bit of Take The Time. :D:D:D:D, that’s the face that this part inspires me. This one as opposed to Streams, has actually a great flow, and it’s consistent. Eternal Rain is a shorter track, this album really needs them. It has a great vibe, and an awesome guitar/keyboard duel. Even though at times I don’t like the patches Diego Tejeida uses. Overall this is a great track, and I like that in the end the bend took this direction (shorter and more consistent songs) instead of sticking to the all over the place wacky stuff. Not that that’s not great. Drowning In The Flood features djent influences and a great chorus. I love this track, and I love Ross’ vocals, they’re very Metallica-ish. Towards the middle, though, it’s ballad time again. The last chorus is possibly one of the best things in the album, shivers everywhere. The song abruptly gets interrupted by the beginning of Sun, the official ballad of the album. This is actually a pretty good ballad, and it may possibly be my band’s favorite, out of the three they did (or four? I think three). Last track is the mammoth, 17 minutes long Celestial Elixir. This track, with its incredible performance video, helped me get into Haken a lot. This track is basically the album in a nutshell, having a grand melodic verses and chorus, wacky instrumentals and metals everywhere. I love the shit out of it. It’s a perfect closer, truly, and in my top 3 Haken songs.

Overall this album is awesome, it’s one of the best debut I’ve ever listened to, and even though it’s a bit long, it still serves as a good and entertaining listen, even though the storyline is cringeworthy.

Favorites: The Point Of No Return, Aquarium, Drowning In The Flood, Celestial Elixir

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Offline Scorpion

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Re: MikeMangioy's top 50 albums...AGAIN?! (v2 list) - v. Mermaids are metal
« Reply #82 on: April 09, 2015, 06:30:47 AM »
Haken improved with every album in my opinion. This one isn't bad, but aside from the final two tracks (Sun is awesome fuck da haterz) it's nothing I really come back to.
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Offline Zydar

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Re: MikeMangioy's top 50 albums...AGAIN?! (v2 list) - v. Mermaids are metal
« Reply #83 on: April 09, 2015, 06:56:22 AM »
Haken :heart

I must revisit this album tonight. It's been too long.
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Offline Evermind

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Re: MikeMangioy's top 50 albums...AGAIN?! (v2 list) - v. Mermaids are metal
« Reply #84 on: April 09, 2015, 09:36:43 AM »
Always nice to see Haken in Top 50 list.
This first band is Soen very cool swingy jazz fusion kinda stuff.

Offline Sacul

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Re: MikeMangioy's top 50 albums...AGAIN?! (v2 list) - v. Mermaids are metal
« Reply #85 on: April 09, 2015, 11:30:34 AM »
I prefer The Mountain - I feel like this album has lots of filler. But the circus music is pretty cool :lol

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# 37: Nirvana - In Utero
1993 - Alternative/Grunge/Noise Rock  - Washington, USA

Last time this album made an appearance, I defined it “shitty”, and was pretty much misunderstood by everybody, if I recall correctly. Hahaa those times were fun. Anyways, everybody knows Nirvana, and everybody knows that they are a grunge band from Seattle. And everybody knows that they tend to morph together melodic elements a-la Beatles to punk rock furiosity and energy. But on this album this three guys decided to put aside the melodic part of their to focus more on noise, and it was the right choice for me. Infact, while not being a totally mess, it stills maintain those melodic moments that Nevermind had, making this album a pretty perfect presentation of what the band truly is, whilist Nevermind was a bit of a scam, talking about the true nature of Nirvana.

With Steve Albini on production, this album has a great sound, everything sounds boomy, vocals have that slight delay that make them interesting, guitars and bass are buzzing as they should and the drums sound big and fat; maybe because they are. Dave Grohl back in the day used 15” and 18” toms, with 20” cymbals. And he pounded the shit out of those skins.

You may possibly know that I played in a Nirvana cover band; well, we now have disbanded because our “Kurt” moved to Australia, and so this band has a new nostalgic feel to me, like it never did before. That band was important for me, it truly made me grow as a musician and as a person, especially thanks to Dylan, our “Kurt”. But enough with the feels and business of mine, let’s talk about the record!

*1,2,3 WHAAANG* Serve The Servants opens this whole thing masterfully, and it’s actually a quite different and memorable Nirvana song. It’s a fun one too, and the lyrics are actually great  and they’re about the experience of being famous, from the point of view of Kurt Cobain. Scentless Apprentice, one of the few songs written by the entirety of the band, continues with a sick groovy riff and an insane chorus, where Kurt screams his lungs out. This one was especially fun to play live, we scared people with it :lol . Next is one of Nirvana’s biggest hits, Heart-Shaped Box. This one is a ballad with a powerful chorus, and even though I might’ve heard it thousands of times, it still doesn’t bore me, unlike other certain songs that I’ve heard thousands of times (ehemSmellsliketeenspiritsehemmmhm). Rape Me and its iconic lyrics, is possibly my least favorite tune out of this, it feels kind of a filler, with the same kind of structure as Smells Like Teen Spirit, riff-speaking. Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge On Seattle is one tune of the “underrated elite”, which is sadly pretty present in this album. A lot of overlooked awesome tunes. Dumb sounds like a mix of Smells, On A Plain and About A Girl, and we’d often joke about it, introducing it like “This song is called Smell Of A Dumb Girl On A Plain” :rollin Anyways, this is one of my favorite Nirvana ballads. Very low dynamic and a lovely cello appearance. The cello is one element that makes this album particular, and more awesome. It appears in this song, All Apologies, and in the 2013 mix of Serve The Servants. It adds a lot of texture that this band does eventually need in order to make their songs sound better, as proved in Unplugged In New York. Very Ape is possibly my favorite Nirvana song. It’s a quirky and short piece, with one hell of a riff and a lot.. a LOT  of energy. That chorus has more power than 12 cups of coffee. Milk It is the most awesome ugly song ever. A great experiment, very possibly written while Kurt was high on something. The product is great: odd time signatures and drum patterns, dissonant guitars and vocals, and lyrics that proclaim self-disgust. It’s so ugly that Kurt laughs at one point in the vocal track, he maybe thought “Why the heck am I doing this”. Pennyroyal Tea is another famous tune, with its iconic chorus. I really love this song, it’s a bit slower and calmer, while still rocking out. A nice listen. Radio Friendly Unit Shifter has all the potential of being an awesome song, but I feel it kinda falls flat. Although it is a great live piece, we included a drum solo, maybe that’s why :neverusethis: Tourette’s is a return to the origins, a 100% dirty punk song, with no actual lyrics and just screaming. Fun stuff! Yeah, it’s all fun and games until All Apologies comes up. A creepily melanchonic song, that I still like to think as a goodbye from Kurt, even though we have You Know You’re Right for that. Beautiful, shivering, a masterpiece, in my top 3 Nirvana tunes and a great close to a quite ugly album, aestethically.

So this is my favorite Nirvana record, if you didn’t guess that already. Like I’ve said, it has a cool mix of all the characteristics of the group, while also bringing new stuff to the table. And, considering it’s their last studio album, they truly went out with a bang.

Favorites: Serve The Servants, Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge On Seattle, Very Ape, All Apologies
« Last Edit: April 09, 2015, 02:12:08 PM by mikemangioy »
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Offline Sacul

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Still have to listen to this one, but I also need to give Nevermind a fair chance, since I finally ended up liking Smells like teen spirit a few weeks ago, after years of loathing it :lol .

Offline Scorpion

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It's probably my favourite Nirvana album, and one I enjoy.

That said, out of the big ones, Nirvana is probably my least favourite grunge band.
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Aquarius is their second best. I had it in the top 15 of my first top 50 list. I think Visions is slightly better, but both are awesome. I'm of the small group that think The Mountain is their worst album to date. It's strange how quickly this band became big (at least in the prog world). From opening the Saturday of Prog Power Europe 5 years ago (I was there at their first show outside the UK!) to headlining a US tour this year, it just seems a little unreal. They're the band I've seen live the most and I'm quite glad I can say I must have been one of the first fan boys they got (at least on mainland Europe). Enough with the ramble. Great album, that's all.
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Offline sneakyblueberry

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In Utero, classic, you classy man. :tup

Offline mikemangioy

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Sorry guys, one post today. I was busy with school and stuff.


#36: Porcupine Tree - Up The Downstair
1993 - Psychedelic/Space Rock - UK

Here’s the return of PT. This time we’ll take a few steps back in their carreer, and go to the first “era” of the group, the space rock/psychedelia days. In these days, the first two albums are actually completely performed by Steven Wilson. Infact, if you didn’t knew it, PT started as some kind of a joke, but ultimately began the major cause of Steven’s success in the rock, and especially, progressive area. So, yep, in the previous album, On The Sunday Of Life, and this one (and half of the next one), he’s all by himself, except for bits and pieces which actually include guests spots by the future members of the band. And there’s re-recorded drums by Gavin Harrison, but that’s years later, it doesn’t count.

So, Up The Downstair is characterized by this ethereal, and spacey approach, and even though it could be very unmemorable, it does an actual great job making every song memorable, having great riffs and/or melodies, and overall a great groove. Steven’s voice is very calm and soothing in this one, and blends with the music excellently, like if it’s just another guitar or another layer of keyboards, and the effect is great and leaves you in awe. Yes, that’s what this album does, it leaves you in awe, it makes you travel through the sky. The songs sound massive, even though they’re not heavy at all. Mammoths. Rainbow psychedelic mammoths. Ok, sorry for that – this album also flows really, really well. It’s almost as good as the flow in Dark Side Of The Moon. Infact, it makes you wanna listen more and more and more stuff.

After a creepy/funny intro, Synesthesia starts things off with a electronic-infused funky groovy piece of music. It’s damn catchy too, that chorus sticks with you until the grave! Definitely one of the best PT openers, and a fairly underrated one too. Always Never kind of forshadows the pop atmospheres that we will hear in the band’s second era, in the albums Stupid Dream and Lightbulb Sun. This one is where Steven’s voice really shines, and features a lot of cool idea, other than Colin Edwin on bass. That’s right, this is his first appearance in PT’s history. Even though Colin is on Always Never, I feel that the most amazing bass moments in the album (and possibly in the whole discography) are in the title-track, Up The Downstair. This is a 10 minute long instrumental, that constantly alternates between ambient, funk (this is where the glorious bass-line is) and hard rock soundscapes. It’s a unique PT song, and there really was never one like It (except maybe for Idiot Prayer, to an extent). Not Beautiful Anymore is yet another instrumental, this one featuring a hard hitting and simple drum groove, and samples. I quite don’t like this track, although in the album itself, it fits greatly. Small Fish is the shortest song in the record (other than the little transitions like Monuments Burn Into Moments and such), and it serves as some kind of prelude to the next track. I really love this one, it really brings to life what I’ve said about how the record affects your mental state, and makes you travel to new lands. Spectacular. Indeed, yet another instrumental: Burning Sky. This is much more dramatic than the other major instrumental track, Up The Downstair. It features a triumphant guitar loop, which is alternated with a heavy oriental-styled riff. This song particularly reminds me of the instrumental section in Ancestral, in Steven’s latest solo record. Cool stuff. The album is closed by Fadeaway, which still remains today one of the best accomplishments by Porcupine Tree. This album is here mostly thanks to this track and how it’s so, so gorgeous. It’s a slow ballad, once again with ethereal spacey atmosphere, but this time the vocal melody is top notch. And the chorus at the end features one of the best lyric line I’ve ever read: “Hit heaven far too high”. Way to go, Steven – 20 years ago you made masterpieces and today? Still masterpieces.

This is a criminally underrated Porcupine Tree record, one that I’d take over The Sky Moves Sideways (which is more highly regarded) any freaking day. And now I need to listen too it again. Goddammit!

Favorites: Synesthesia, Up The Downstair, Small Fish, Fadeaway

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Offline Sacul

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I never gave this album a fair chance tbh, so I have no opinions on it :P . Btw, your write-ups have surely improved, as well as your English :tup .

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YES YES YES

3rd favourite PT album right there. Fucking fantastic!
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Offline mikemangioy

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Re: MikeMangioy's top 50 albums...AGAIN?! (v2 list) - v. NUGGETZ
« Reply #94 on: April 11, 2015, 06:45:05 AM »
Btw, your write-ups have surely improved, as well as your English :tup .
Thanks man. I was really aiming to that.

I don't think you guys know this next band, but whatever.


# 35: Dream Theater - Octavarium
2005 - Progressive Rock/Metal - New York, USA

We finally arrive to a point of this list where I can start talking about some major epic stuff. It’s a big step up compared to the stuff before, and of course, that also coincidentally is whenever a Dream Theater album comes up. There’s no need to introduce this band, we’re in the band’s unofficially officialy forum, what the heck. What needs to be done is an introduction to this album, because there’s actually quite a bit to talk about.

Octavarium is the band’s 8th studio record, and it’s the most different out of the albums that came out in the ‘00s. Yes, because if we’ve got the instrumentally heavy and insane stuff from Train Of Thought and Systematic Chaos, and the long and intertwining pieces from Black Clouds & Silver Linings and Six Degrees Of Inner Turbulence, this album is the polar opposite of its neighbors. Infact, Octavarium features 8 songs and only 2 (one just barely) are more than ten minutes long. And also, the songs are more pop influenced, brighter, less heavy (not that there’s not heavy stuff in the record, mind you) and definitely simpler. Another cool key factor to the record is the incredible amount of musical and graphical nuggetz. I’m sure you all know them, but  if you don’t, check this out. The most known and, honestly, coolest nugget is the fact that this album is based around 2 concepts. The first one being circles, completion, and how everything starts the way it ends and viceversa. The second concept (a truly ingenious thing) is that this album is based around octaves. There are 8 tracks and each track represents a note (and the note they represent is actually the key of the song). Starting with F, the next song is gonna be G, the next one A and so on, up until the return of F in the last track. Complete with little interludes which represent the sharp notes. I know, if you’re reading this for the first time and didn’t know about it, it sounds insane, but it’s actually very very cool, and it’s quite an unique approach.

Octavarium starts (or ends :neverusethis:) with The Root Of All Evil, which is the third entry of Mike Portnoy’s Twelve Step Suite. While all the other songs of the 12SS are divided into different sections that are very distinct from each other, TROAE actually flows like a normal song, with a recurring chorus and everything. It’s also the shortest 12SS song, clocking in at 8 minutes. This is also probably the best track to open a concert with, the intro is that good. Talking about the actual track, it’s really groovy and heavy enough, especially in the first part. Moving on, The Answer Lies Within is a poppish ballad like we didn’t hear since Falling Into Infinity. The lyrics are kinda meh and stereotypical, but they work well at least, sung with a melodic tune which also features strings. These Walls is a track that features a baritone guitar, and one would think “BRING THE MESHUGGAH” but actually no. Infact it’s still a melodic piece, even with the low tuning, and, dare I say, one of the best ones in the album. Dat outro. I Walk Beside You sees the return of strong influences from U2, an influence that I certainly miss, and that I hope they bring back. It’s nice sometimes to have happy and uplifting stuff, even if it’s 4 minutes long. After this, the heavier side of this album begins, with Panic Attack. This track is pure Mike Portnoy goodness. It’s one of the best drum tracks that I’ve ever heard. It manages to be hard and challenging, groovy and creative at the same time. God bless MP. Anyways, this song is as frantic as DT can get, and given the topic, the lyrics fit well for sure with the music. Up next is Never Enough. I love this song a lot, even though I know it’s not well-seen upon the majority of you guys. This track features heavy Muse influences, namely Stockholm Syndrome-ish ones, and that’s not bad, considering SS is kind of my favorite Muse song (this version tho). James has one of his best performances in this one, in my opinion. It seems he really got the lyrics, about stupid fans. And the album just keeps getting better and better with the two final tracks. Sacrificed Sons is and will always be one of my favorite DT songs of all time, and for one reason: it’s about 9/11 and it does such a good job recreating all of the emotional spectrum that people had that day. From fear, to anger, to wrecking sadness. It just hits me a lot, and makes me think. Whilist the last song, the long suite, the best DT song ever (in my opinion), Octavarium. In its 24 minutes this track manages to grow and grow and grow in pathos, atmosphere, tension, lyrics, musical complexity and anything else. Until you arrive at the “Intervals” part, where you get like a sum-up of the album, with samples from other songs being thrown in that beautiful 7/8 riff. Everything gets incredibly heavy at one point and then all hell breaks loose. TRAPPED INSIDE THIS OCTAVARIUM is one of the most iconic and epic moments in music’s history, period. After that, having such an emotional outro with the Razor’s Edge, thinking about all the road behind you, and where you started your journey, is one of the best feelings ever. And of course, everything ends with the intro of The Root Of All Evil, so staying faithful to the “full circle” concept.

Octavarium was my first DT record, and it will always have a special place in my heart. Even after 20 years, the band had the balls to risk something different, but creating one of their best babies. For me at least. 

Favorites: These Walls, Panic Attack, Never Enough, Sacrificed Sons, Octavarium
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Offline Evermind

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Re: MikeMangioy's top 50 albums...AGAIN?! (v2 list) - v. NUGGETZ
« Reply #95 on: April 11, 2015, 07:07:25 AM »
It's always interesting how the DT records you discovered first fare after you become familiar with their whole discography. My first DT record was Systematic Chaos, and for all the flaws it has, it's actually somewhere at 4th or 5th place among all DT records (my top 3 is SFAM, I&W, TOT).

Octavarium is a great pick, and Sacrificed Sons is one of my favourite DT tunes too.
This first band is Soen very cool swingy jazz fusion kinda stuff.

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Re: MikeMangioy's top 50 albums...AGAIN?! (v2 list) - v. NUGGETZ
« Reply #96 on: April 11, 2015, 09:53:28 AM »
You'd normally think that your first DT album might always remain your fav. In some cases it is, but not for me - I discovered the band with ADTOE (after being blown away by LTE), and loved it. But now I think it's among their weakest efforts :lol .

Oh fuck yeah 8VM. Never really clicked with me until a few months later, whaen I gave it another chance. Dude, what the hell was I thinking. It's all-around awesome :metal .

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Re: MikeMangioy's top 50 albums...AGAIN?! (v2 list) - v. NUGGETZ
« Reply #97 on: April 11, 2015, 10:24:13 AM »
Worst DT album, and it's not even close.
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Hey, the length is fine :azn: Thanks!

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Re: MikeMangioy's top 50 albums...AGAIN?! (v2 list) - v. NUGGETZ
« Reply #98 on: April 11, 2015, 10:31:17 AM »
Worst DT album, and it's not even close.

:lol

It's in the bottom three for me, but those three are miles away from the rest.
Hey dude slow the fuck down so we can finish together at the same time.  :biggrin:
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Offline mikemangioy

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Re: MikeMangioy's top 50 albums...AGAIN?! (v2 list) - v. NUGGETZ
« Reply #99 on: April 11, 2015, 01:19:21 PM »
So, guys, since I'm running short of writeups (I don't want to write one just before I release it) that's gonna be it for today, since I want to write more so that I have less pressure. Sorry guys, and anyways, thanks for following this. Tune back in tomorrow  :biggrin:
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Offline Crow

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Re: MikeMangioy's top 50 albums...AGAIN?! (v2 list) - v. NUGGETZ
« Reply #100 on: April 11, 2015, 06:35:13 PM »
but TROAE is the best song off Octavarium
:<

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A bit late, but here it is, once again, the return of controversy!


#34: Green Day - 21st Century Breakdown
2009 - Punk/Pop/Alternative/Opera Rock - California, USA

Once again, controversy! Last time when I revealed this album I think I lost some of my followers in the thread. I hope this time you’re more used to it, but what the hell, it’s my list. Infact, 21st Century Breakdown is my favorite Green Day record, and I can’t really do nothing about it. I just see pure brilliance through this album, great musicianship, and a lot of experimentation, talking about Green Day. Infact, this is the furthest Green Day have ever been from punk rock. 21st Century Breakdown is a concept album, divided in three acts: “Heroes And Cons”, “Charlatans And Saints” and “Horseshoes And Handgrenades”. It feels that this album’s concept was actually trying to be an American Idiot 2, and so it kinda feels forced. But ultimately they’ve done a good job with the lyrics actually, so I don’t mind about that. Whilst musically, as I’ve said, there’s a lot of experimentation for the band. We’ll see, now, let’s take a look at the tracklist. Keep in mind that Green Day are technically a punk rock band:

After the intro, which is also a recurrent melody in the album, Song Of The Century, the record actually begins with the title-track, 21st Century Breakdown. This track was defined by the band “our Bohemian Rhapsody”. Infact, like the Queen track, it goes to three distinct phases: the first, this kind of mild melodic rock track (reminds me of some classic rock acts), the second, a more aggressive and punk-ish thing and the last, an anthemic kind of outro. Know Your Enemy is probably one of the very few punk pieces in the record. It was also the single, but it’s not that much of a strong song compared to the others. Not bad though. ¡Viva La Gloria! starts out quite melodic, with piano, only then to transform into a fun and fast pop punk tune. It’s lovely. Now for one of the best in the album, Before The Lobotomy. This song once again, starts out as a ballad, but towards the end, energy kicks in, this time in 7/4! Very uncommon for punk (even though it’s not all that punk). Anyways, this song is furnished with beautiful melodies, and a powerful message. Now for Christian’s Inferno the band sails through industrial seas, combining electronic noise with a typical Green Day chorus. This is one of the most critiquited ones, and I honestly never got why. Last Night On Earth is the sweetest Green Day ballad around. Entirely done with piano, this one is a love song, of course. And being one that usually hates love songs if they’re not done with some kind of uniqueness to them, this is an exception. It’s a bit cheesy though, but still great. Act two begins with probably my favorite song in the album, East Jesus Nowhere. Still haven’t got that title. This song has a bluesy atmosphere, that actually translates pretty well to Green Day. Other than that it also has some eastern atmospheres in the instrumental section. Check the live version of it, especially this one, you’ll not regret it. Peacemaker explores more of a spanish/ska idea, and I do enjoy it. A lot, especially the instrumental part. It’s unexpectedly complex, especially drumming-speaking. It’s also a hate song, and I love hate songs, as incoherent that sounds :lol . Last Of The American Girls is another one of those poppish songs, although more groovy and somewhat slower. I also hear a bit of Weezer in it. Once again, like Know Your Enemy, it feels a bit sub-par. Although, I enjoy it more than KYE. Murder City is THE punk song in the album. This is how it should be done, Green Day. This is what Uno, Dos and Trè should’ve sounded like. Amazing groove, flow and instrumental value. When they play this live they include a sax solo (I have no idea why) and it actually fits great, so check that out. ¿Viva La Gloria? (Little Girl) has a piano-ragtime feel. I love the 6/8 use in this album, and this song is the best use of it. Now, here come the feels. Restless Heart Syndrome is one of the most, if not the most emotional Green Day song out there. They’ve really proved their musicianship and maturity in this one. It’s sadly underrated though, everyone looks at that fucker 4 tracks later. No offense to 21 Guns, but I really think this is far superior. That climax. After a few tears and a lot of shivers, it’s always nice to rock the fuck out. And that’s Horseshoes And Handgrenades job. This song, man, this song. This piece opens the final act of the album and it’s an headbanging fest. It really pumps me up. The Static Age brings things back towards a melodic edge, and it’s the best song of its kind in the record. It has a really great vibe and makes me smile, even though the lyrics are sad in a way. 21 Guns is the most popular song out of this record, and even though I bashed it a few lines before, I still have to say that it is a great ballad, with quite the moving bridge. And video. The record closes with two of my favorites in there: American Eulogy, a two-piece song that reminds me of Homecoming and Jesus Of Suburbia (Mike sings in it), and See The Light, a song that takes the intro of 21st Century Breakdown, and makes it a song on its own. The result? One hell of a closer.

This is a very controversial entry to the list and yes, I see why so many people bash it. But if it weren’t for Green Day, I probably would not be where I am today. I respect them for what they did and what they represented for me at such a young age, and this is their masterpiece IMO. Haters gonna hate :zydar:

Favorites: Before The Lobotomy, East Jesus Nowhere, Peacemaker, Restless Heart Syndrome, Horseshoes And Handgrenades, The Static Age, See The Light
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Offline mikemangioy

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Re: MikeMangioy's top 50 albums...AGAIN?! (v2 list) - v. Sellouts?
« Reply #102 on: April 12, 2015, 02:17:32 PM »
Down the list we go


# 33: Metallica - Metallica (aka The Black Album)
1991 - Heavy Metal - California, USA

Poor Black Album. Poor, poor Black Album. This record presented to us the first big change in Metallica’s music, by eliminating all the thrash and proggy aspects of their songs. For this reason I see a lot of people bashing it, because “Metallica sold out after And Justice For All”. Now, while I think they’ve recently sold out (they don’t know how to profit anymore, so they sponsor teams and go on endless tours :/ :/), this is not selling out, this is realizing that you went too far, and taking a step back. I respect this decision, and what came out of it is ultimately a great product.

One of the biggest things about the Black Album is that Bob Rock is at production. And he did a fucking great job with the record. After an album such as And Justice For All where the songs were long and complex, here we have 3 more songs, and it’s five minutes shorter. So the songs are actually just straight heavy metal, with some thrash influences here and there of course, and they’re pretty short too. Another thing about the record is that bass is back! In AJFA, as you all may know, it was barely audible, if not at all. In this record is actually well present, and takes even a frontseat in some of the tracks. As the fan of bass that I am, I couldn’t be much happier. I love Jason Newsted. All of these characteristics make TBA a unique album in Metallica’s discography, since it’s pretty much the only one in its style.

Enter Sandman is a song everybody knows. It’s a classic and pretty iconic, but yes, overrated. Overall it’s very enjoyable, brings back a lot of nostalgia. Sad But True is the bomb, though. It’s one of ‘Tallica heaviest tracks: slow, fat, evil and even solemn. I love the lyrics. Holier Than Thou is faster, and quicker in delivery. In fact it’s only 3:48. It’s a fun track, and I like to come back to it once in a while. The Unforgiven is a ballad that I cannot praise enough. The preview of Load’s country/bluesesque style, united with that gorgeous solo and feeling make this one of my favorite ballads ever. Wherever I May Roam presents oriental influences, tied with lyrics about ghosts and wandering the earth forever. It’s a very cool track, with a nice groove and structure. Don’t Tread On Me is very groove metal in nature, infact it reminds me of Pantera. It’s very sing-along-y and catchy, and so it’s always a fun listen. Through The Never features the thrash influences I was talking about, even though they’re not that explicit. This is Metallica’s take at proggy lyrics about time and space, and they’ve done it pretty well, I admit. It’s also one of my favorites on the record. Nothing Else Matters is the other song that everybody knows. I like a bit more than Sandman, since it’s pretty emotional and features one hell of a build up and solo at the end. Also, that orchestra is very lovely. Of Wolf And Man is another quick and groovy song. I actually quite like this one, and all of its backing vocals give it greater strength. And now begins the best part of the record. The God That Failed is I think my favorite song in the record. It’s slow like Sad But True, but not as heavy. I just like that it’s pretty melodic and that the riffs and lyrics are so memorable. My Friend Of Misery is yet another ballad, although this one is more of a power ballad, and yes, guided by bass. I love the live performance of this, where James makes the crowd do a harmony  :heart. The album closes with The Struggle Within, which is the fastest song on the record. It’s great fun, especially after the second chorus.

So, yep. The Black Album. Pretty self-explenatory, but still awesome, and an album that I occasionally pop in.

Favorites: Sad But True, The Unforgiven, Wherever I May Roam, Through The Never, The God That Failed, My Friend Of Misery
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Offline Sacul

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Re: MikeMangioy's top 50 albums...AGAIN?! (v2 list) - v. Sell outs?
« Reply #103 on: April 12, 2015, 02:22:16 PM »
 :corn

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Re: MikeMangioy's top 50 albums...AGAIN?! (v2 list) - v. Sell outs?
« Reply #104 on: April 12, 2015, 02:45:42 PM »
The Black Album is awesome. I really don't care what anyone says about it. It's a very good, straightforward heavy metal album. I personally would not put it this high, but I applaud you for giving credit to Metallica for both it and Death Magnetic.
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