DTF's Top 50 Bands/Artists Countdown Thread! (the final list)

[nick_z]

Lastly,  I just wanted to say that The Dear Hunter hold a special little place in my heart because I managed to get my Dad into them before he passed away and we managed to catch a show together 18 months before he died. That show meant a lot to me, and listening to the band always helps me feel a little closer to him in some ways. This was what he posted on Facebook the following morning...

"Last night me and Luke went to see an amazing band in Bristol. They're called The Dear Hunter. It's as if Zeppelin and Yes had a bastard child with balls of steel, three wonderful guitarists and a VOICE. Wow, what a voice, it soars and it swoops, it screams and soothes. Thank you Luke for a great night much love Dad xxxx"

I’m not crying, you are…



Great memory!

[Jamesman42]

Just haven't dived into TDH much. Actually thinking of catching their upcoming show if work allows for it.

I am not a big TDH fan, mostly indifferent to The Acts albums, but The Color Spectrum (which isn't an Acts album) is an awesome album.

[nick_z]

Another 0/2 for me (got nothing so far!)

I do enjoy The Dear Hunter...very unique in their being "theatrical" but not too cheesy. At some point I also found a used DVD of their live Color Spectrum performance and it's really neat.

Frank Zappa is another weird one, in that over time I've got a bunch of his albums, overall enjoyed them and always telling myself I need to do more of a deep dive, but never end up doing it. Hovering's post might just provide the inspiration I need. BTW, I did have my first exposure with Strictly Commercial too, and found it to be an excellent introduction.

[TAC]

Another 0/2 for me (got nothing so far!)

Same here.

Hey Reaper, you did get my list didn't you?

[KevShmev]

I didn't return in time to submit a list to this, but will be fun to follow.

None of the artists featured so far would have made my list.  Zappa and King Crimson would have made my top 50 a decade ago, but I rarely listen to either anymore.  Both still have certain songs/albums I love and will revisit, but it's not enough to push either into my top 50 anymore.

[Zoom E]

I’m 1/8 so far, with Scorpions.

I am a fan of The Dear Hunter, Avenged Sevenfold and Symphony X and it’s probable than one or more of those bands would make my top 50.

 I only have a couple of King Crimson albums, and they haven’t impacted me all that much.

I have always intended to check out some Zappa, but never got around to it. Will give a listen to the compilation that Jammindude recommended.

[jammindude]

I’m 1/8 so far, with Scorpions.

I am a fan of The Dear Hunter, Avenged Sevenfold and Symphony X and it’s probable than one or more of those bands would make my top 50.

 I only have a couple of King Crimson albums, and they haven’t impacted me all that much.

I have always intended to check out some Zappa, but never got around to it. Will give a listen to the compilation that Jammindude recommended.

[Wayne’s World]

XANG!!! 

[/Wayne’s World]

[twosuitsluke]

Another 0/2 for me (got nothing so far!)

I do enjoy The Dear Hunter...very unique in their being "theatrical" but not too cheesy. At some point I also found a used DVD of their live Color Spectrum performance and it's really neat.

I agree with TDH being theatrical but not cheesy. Also, in all seriousness, if you ever want to part with that DVD, I'm interested!

[The Realm]

I didn't submit as found this one too hard but I would have been a zero so far. All good artists but none would have been that close to my own top 25. This is going to a really fascinating countdown as we get closer to the actual top 25....

[SomeoneLikeHim]

2/8

20. Avenged Sevenfold
9. The Dear Hunter

Absolutely love The Dear Hunter! Hardly listened to anything else for months when I first got into the band and the Acts in particular in 2015 or so. I'm a big fan of recurring motifs in music so to have developing musical ideas carry over from album to album was just mindblowing to me. I would suggest Act IV as a good starting point for people curious about the acts. There is of course a story to follow but it's told pretty cryptically for the most part and is definitely not a requirement to enjoy the music. Act I is unfortunately the weakest of the bunch even though that's where I started.

[twosuitsluke]

Absolutely love The Dear Hunter! Hardly listened to anything else for months when I first got into the band and the Acts in particular in 2015 or so. I'm a big fan of recurring motifs in music so to have developing musical ideas carry over from album to album was just mindblowing to me. I would suggest Act IV as a good starting point for people curious about the acts. There is of course a story to follow but it's told pretty cryptically for the most part and is definitely not a requirement to enjoy the music. Act I is unfortunately the weakest of the bunch even though that's where I started.

I too am a big fan or recurring motifs (go figure, Coheed are my favourite band), and I second Act IV as the best starting point. As I said above, I consider it one of those flawless masterpieces, that is perfect beginning to end.

You lost me with your take on Act I thought. It is absolutely NOT the weakest! I know many will agree with you tbf, but to me the weakest is Act III. For one reason or another, that record just does not connect with me in the way the others do.

Also, going back to Act I, if you've not heard the "Live Recording" they did during COVID, on Pillar then you are missing out. It changed my view on the album and I now consider it the definitive version. It's been on streaming services the last few months, so go wild...

https://open.spotify.com/album/3dW2kN37rpgWWNg3v0HuCL?si=WAJjyJ2BSaOTyFaGLz6NEQ&context=spotify%3Aalbum%3A3dW2kN37rpgWWNg3v0HuCL

[nobloodyname]

Lastly,  I just wanted to say that The Dear Hunter hold a special little place in my heart because I managed to get my Dad into them before he passed away and we managed to catch a show together 18 months before he died. That show meant a lot to me, and listening to the band always helps me feel a little closer to him in some ways. This was what he posted on Facebook the following morning...

"Last night me and Luke went to see an amazing band in Bristol. They're called The Dear Hunter. It's as if Zeppelin and Yes had a bastard child with balls of steel, three wonderful guitarists and a VOICE. Wow, what a voice, it soars and it swoops, it screams and soothes. Thank you Luke for a great night much love Dad xxxx"

This is beautiful. Thank you so much for sharing it.

[SomeoneLikeHim]

Also, going back to Act I, if you've not heard the "Live Recording" they did during COVID, on Pillar then you are missing out. It changed my view on the album and I now consider it the definitive version. It's been on streaming services the last few months, so go wild...

I have listened to that, really great performance and definitely gave me a new appreciation for the album. His Hands Matched His Tongue has always been one of my favorite tracks as well. So it's not that I don't like act 1 but the other 4 are just so good!

[twosuitsluke]

Also, going back to Act I, if you've not heard the "Live Recording" they did during COVID, on Pillar then you are missing out. It changed my view on the album and I now consider it the definitive version. It's been on streaming services the last few months, so go wild...

I have listened to that, really great performance and definitely gave me a new appreciation for the album. His Hands Matched His Tongue has always been one of my favorite tracks as well. So it's not that I don't like act 1 but the other 4 are just so good!

Oh yeah, I get it. I don't dislike Act III, it's just that the other 4 are some the best records I've ever heard.

[wolfking]

0/8.

[ReaperKK]

No tie today!

43. Evergrey
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Monthly Spotify Streams: 114,709
Highest Finish: 5 (Nachtmerrie)
Number of Lists appeared on: 6 (jingle.boy, wolfking, Nachtmerrie, Lethean, Evermind, nick_z)

I've seen the name get tossed around here, and perhaps I've heard a song or two but otherwise I'm completely unfamiliar with their music.

42. UFO
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Monthly Spotify Streams: 946,280
Highest Finish: 1 (TAC)
Number of Lists appeared on: 4 (pg1067, TAC, devieira73, Zoom E)

My dad was a big UFO fan but it never really did much for me personally. In the spirit of the countdown I'm going to give their stuff a listen to later today.

[Zydar]

I checked out UFO around this time last year. I liked what I heard, but never pursued it beyond a compilation album. Rock Bottom has a cool riff though.

[twosuitsluke]

0/2 today.

These two were never gonna make my list and I've probably listened to a grand total of like 2 hours music for each of these bands.

[SwedishGoose]

1 / 10

Evergray
I have a few albums and like them quite a bit but they would not reach my 50th

UFO
I have not listened to UFO and they are not rated.


Not rated
Symphony X , Miles Davis, Avenged Sevenfold, Allagoch,
Scorpions, The Dear Hunter, Frank Zappa, Evergrey, UFO

25
24
23
22
21
20
19
18
17
16
15
14
13
12
11
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2 King Crimson
1

[wolfking]

Nice, Evergrey.  Kinda surprised to see them make even a top 50.

UFO would make a top 40 I reckon, even though Tim only got me into them a couple years ago.  They will probably climb over time though.  Amazing band.

[SomeoneLikeHim]

0/2 today for me as well. Heard of both bands but barely listened to either.

[Evermind]

I'll post a more-detailed writeup when I'm back from work!

[ReaperKK]

Looking forward to it Evermind!

[nick_z]

Nice, my first hit!

I had Evergrey at #18. When I was putting my list together, I wasn't sure whether they'd crack the top 25. But the more I thought about it, the more they secured their place (I mean, they weren't even borderline, in the end!)

I've loved their music for a long time now - my first exposure was when I bought their Solitude Dominance Tragedy album as it was released.  And I have to say that run from that one all the way to The Inner Circle is pretty incredible (In Search of Truth and Recreation Day being my favorites). I actually didn't mind Monday Morning Apocalypse. The lull kinda happened with Torn and Glorious Collision, although even those two have songs I enjoy. Then the "reunion" (of sorts) happened and, as was recently discussed, the band truly hit another impressive streak of records. They might not have the same dark/proggy magic as the earlier ones for me, but their consistency is something else.

[jammindude]

I own In Search of Truth, but I spun it a few times and I thought it was a big meh-burger. Never checked out anything else from Evergrey and I’m a bit surprised to see them here.

UFO is hit and miss with me. Really like some of their stuff, but I own Lights Out and I think it’s just OK. I have been wanting to check out Strangers in the Night though, so I will work on picking that up.

[The Letter M]

No tie today!

43. Everygrey
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Monthly Spotify Streams: 114,709
Highest Finish: 5 (Nachtmerrie)
Number of Lists appeared on: 6 (jingle.boy, wolfking, Nachtmerrie, Lethean, Evermind, nick_z)

I've seen the name get tossed around here, and perhaps I've heard a song or two but otherwise I'm completely unfamiliar with their music.

42. UFO
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Monthly Spotify Streams: 946,280
Highest Finish: 1 (TAC)
Number of Lists appeared on: 4 (pg1067, TAC, devieira73, Zoom E)

My dad was a big UFO fan but it never really did much for me personally. In the spirit of the countdown I'm going to give their stuff a listen to later today.

NR  Miles Davis
NR  Symphony X
NR  Agalloch
NR  The Deer Hunter
NR  Frank Zappa
NR  Evergrey
NR  UFO
29 King Crimson
25  ?
.
.
.
01  ?

Another two that I am not familiar with, and so, did not rank. I have seen those names tossed around here before though but I'm not even sure what genres they are.

-Marc.

[Mladen]

Evergrey is really good. Everyone knows the classic three-album streak in the 00s, but I'd single out Glorious colission as an underrated one. The last several albums all have good stuff on them as well. I'd love to see them live again, I haven't attended a concert of theirs since 2008.

[TheHoveringSojourn808]

never heard of either of today's bands, lol

25
24
23 Miles Davis
22
21
20
19
18
17 King Crimson
16
15 Agalloch
14
13
12
11
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1 Frank Zappa

[Metro]

Never listened to either band.

[HOF]

Never heard Everygrey until I checked out some of them just now. Not my style.

UFO I’ve sampled a few times before but they didn’t catch my interest.

[Zantera]

Checked out some Evergrey, never really stood out to me. UFO is before my time but I do like Doctor Doctor.

[Buddyhunter1]

Ah, Evergrey - such an iconic band that nobody's even pointed out that Reaper misspelled it yet.

[ReaperKK]

Ah, Evergrey - such an iconic band that nobody's even pointed out that Reaper misspelled it yet.

Oops! Fixt. Sorry I do these before I head out to work so there could be good daily discussions but I'm often running on little to no coffee.

[twosuitsluke]

Ah, Evergrey - such an iconic band that nobody's even pointed out that Reaper misspelled it yet.

Oops! Fixt. Sorry I do these before I head out to work so there could be good daily discussions but I'm often running on little to no coffee.

Everygrey you shufflin'

[LithoJazzoSphere]

Everyone knows the classic three-album streak in the 00s

Sure about that?   

I've probably listened to a grand total of like 2 hours music for each of these bands.

Heard of both bands but barely listened to either.

I own In Search of Truth...Never checked out anything else from Evergrey

I've seen the name get tossed around here, and perhaps I've heard a song or two but otherwise I'm completely unfamiliar with their music.

never heard of either of today's bands

Never listened to either band.

Never heard Everygrey until I checked out some of them just now.