Lonestar's Top 50 Album Thread v 2.0 - #1!!!!!!!!!!

[lonestar]

#7- Steven Wilson- The Raven that Refused to Sing (2013)





Yeah, it was actually tough to decide between this and HCE for my Steven Wilson submission. While his work dropped a bit after HCE for me, Raven is absolute perfection, beginning to end. I mean, take the genius that Wilson is to begin with, and literally put the biggest talents in the business around him, and something gold has to happen. I think what I love most about this one is the diversity of style, and the homage he pays to the classic prog legends in his own way with this collection of ghost stories. I'd say more, but I feel most of DTF made up their minds about where they stand on this one long ago.

Favorite Tracks- Luminol, The Watchmaker, The Pin Drop, The Raven that Refused To Sing


The Raven that Refused to Sing- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n8sLcvWG1M4

[jingle.boy]

It's too bad you didn't include HCE... then I could've commented how you actually got me to like (and buy!) something by Steven Wilson.  But now I can't.

Wait, wut?

[lonestar]

Sorry man...

[LithoJazzoSphere]

I need to hear Flaming Row again.  I remember enjoying it, but don't recall much about it now. 

That might be Wilson's best solo album.  "Luminol" is an incredible track. 

[KevShmev]

I like Luminol, but it's the only song on The Raven that I do not genuflect to on a weekly basis.  It's a bit too busy at times. Still a good song, though.

Drive Home, The Holy Drinker, The Watchmaker and the title track are all among the best songs SW has ever written.

[mike099]

The guitar solo at the end of Drive Home is fantastic and one of my favorite guitar solos of all time.  Great album.

[lonestar]

Looking at the top six... I got three albums that are generally classified by DTF consensus as masterpieces, one that's a hidden gem from ten years ago, and two that are very 'me' specific.

[ReaperKK]

Man I love The Raven. It's the best SW solo album by a wide margin in large thanks to some amazing guitar work by Guthrie.

[King Postwhore]

My # 2 album of all time RJ. 

[lonestar]

Aaaaaaaaaand next...

#6- Anathema- Weather Systems (2012)





Hard to think that on my AOTY list for 2012, this would be #3, sitting behind the album in the 4 spot, and Beyond the Bridge which was on my previous list. Talk about a stacked fucking year. This album is another that the battle lines across DTF have already been drawn, I highly doubt there are many of us who haven't either fallen instantly in love with this album solely based on Untouchable, or decided it wasn't there cup of tea. I'm of course in the former spot, the vocal harmonies, and the surreal soft power of this album really make it stand out as unique. Funny thing is, not much of what they did after this really clicked for me, and not a ton of their older stuff did either except WHBWH. But this album...man.... I'd easily put Lightning Song in my top 5 of most beautiful songs ever written, and to have the joy of seeing them open up with the first four tracks, front row staring at Lee...just perfect.


Favorite Tracks- Untouchable I&II, Lightning Song, Sunlight, The Storm Before the Calm


Untouchable I&II- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YDsMpOM4uAU

[Sacul]

I know some folks prefer WHBWH or their older material (I love it all except the death/doom stuff), but this album is just monumental. I got to see some of these songs live, and The Storm Before the Calm was just insane.

[LithoJazzoSphere]

I like all their music, including the death/doom era, but nothing beats WS. 

[Lethean]

Weather Systems is an excellent choice.  I do like the albums before and after quite a bit, and sometimes might even like Distant Satellites better.  But only sometimes.

[wolfking]

I like all their music, including the death/doom era, but nothing beats WS.

Never heard much from these guys if anything but I'm interested they had a doom/death era!

[King Postwhore]

Sonically so beautiful.   Love this album.

[KevShmev]

I wasn't able to really get into the couple other albums I heard by Anathema, but Weather Systems is pretty damn great.

[nick_z]

Anathema's death-doom era "proper" didn't last that long...it was basically their debut EP (Crestfallen), plus their first full-length Serenades and subsequent EP Pentecost III. Basically the albums fronted by their first singer, Darren White.

The first album with Vincent Cavanagh as a vocalist (The Silent Enigma) was already somewhere in between what they were and what they'd become.

My favorite phase is the Eternity- Alternative 4 - Judgement run (A4 is my #1 album from them). Absolutely fantastic stuff...a bit bleak overall (compared to the more uplifting approach of the more recent albums), but very "powerful". If one is used to Vincent's vocals now, listening to Eternity might be a bit jarring (he was still coming into his own as a vocalist there), but already starting with Alternative 4, he had matured significantly (I'd recommend at least Fragile Dreams and Lost Control). And then, on Judgement, his vocals are pretty great (Deep, the opener, is one of my favorite Anathema songs, period).

But, yes, of the phase that started with We're Here...(I think of that as their "positive-prog" phase), Weather System is my favorite (and, really, up there in their discography as a whole). It's a great, great album. And the Untouchable songs are near-masterpieces. 

[LithoJazzoSphere]

I've never really felt calling them positive or optimistic prog felt right.  In comparison to their earlier material, it is definitely lighter, but even then most of it is still fairly melancholic for music in general.  "The Lost Child" is relatively dark, for example. 

[KevShmev]

I say we toss out the labels and call it good music. 

[lonestar]

I say we toss out the labels and call it good music. 

Where's the fun in that? 

[LithoJazzoSphere]

We should get rid of all the aisle and product labels at the grocery store and just have two sections, "good food" and "bad food". 

[KevShmev]

Agreed.
 
Peanut Butter is the first to go in the bad food aisle.  That looks and (I would imagine) tastes like dog shit.

[Lethean]

You would imagine?  Are you saying you've never had peanut butter?

[LithoJazzoSphere]

You're apparently never had a peanut butter shake.  That is definitely in the "good food" aisle. 

Now mustard, that goes in the "bad food" section. 

[King Postwhore]

Agreed.
 
Peanut Butter is the first to go in the bad food aisle.  That looks and (I would imagine) tastes like dog shit.

It takes all my might not to scold you. Lol

[lonestar]

Who the fuck doesn't like peanut butter?

Now mustard, that goes in the "bad food" section. 

What is wrong with you all?

[King Postwhore]

Chef, that's heresy.

[LithoJazzoSphere]

What is wrong with you all?

I don't even have the necessary advanced degrees to know where to begin, but I know it'll take them...

[lonestar]

What is wrong with you all?

I don't even have the necessary advanced degrees to know where to begin, but I know it'll take them...

Fair enough 

[SwedishGoose]

I checked out Anathema because of the buzz around this album here.
Glad I did....it's wonderful.
Got to see them live during the Optimist tour. So glad I did.... was a wonderful but surreal experience. Dfiniteley some tension on stage.

[wolfking]

The term 'bad food' and both peanut butter and mustard don't go together, especially peanut butter, good lord!

[Elite]

Catching up:

Elinoire is great! Haven’t heard it in years though, so I might need to remedy that. Shame Flaming Row haven’t managed to come close to capturing the same magic since.

The Raven.., while a fantastic album, wouldn’t make my list, for the simple fact that I like some of his other albums even more.

And the sane goed for Weather Systems, I prefer WHBWH, mostly for nostalgic ‘I-heard-this-one-first’ reasons, coupled by an amazing performance of roughly the whole album at the Night of the Prog festival. Weather Systems, to me, was like them trying to replicate WHBWH and not fully succeeding. I can totally get why one would prefer this one though, it’s great either way.

[nick_z]

I've never really felt calling them positive or optimistic prog felt right.  In comparison to their earlier material, it is definitely lighter, but even then most of it is still fairly melancholic for music in general.  "The Lost Child" is relatively dark, for example.

Yes, you are absolutely right...I think of the recent phase that way in relation to the earlier portion of their discography. I believe a lot of the "darkness" in the old records was from original bass player Duncan Patterson anyway...I mean, even just the lyrics...compare for example

Lost Control (from Alternative 4)

Life has betrayed me once again
I accept that some things will never change
I've let your tiny minds magnify my agony
And it's left me with a chemical dependency for sanity

Yes, I am falling
How much longer 'til I hit the ground?
I can't tell you why I'm breaking down
Do you wonder why I prefer to be alone?
Have I really lost control?

to Everything:

Needed time to clear my mind
Breathe the free air find some peace there
I used to keep my heart in jail
But the choice was love or fear of pain

And I chose love

Because everything is energy
And energy is you and me
Everything is energy in you and me

[Zydar]

I'm going to check out that Anathema album later, I've never heard them before.

[lonestar]

I'm going to check out that Anathema album later, I've never heard them before.

 


Really?