OT: The Semi-Annual, Taste Optional Music Thread: Post Your Mid-Winter Blues Music

[HandshakeLine]

It's a sickness that I almost was sucked into but being cheap saved me. $5K 5 Watt tube amps and super high efficiency speakers and $25K turntables...

Yeah, as @BlindWillyMcHurt and I have talked about here, music making gear can also get kind of stupid like that. But being mostly deaf in an ear has really helped me save money on expensive home stereo stuff.

Mono rules, baby.

 

[dogthateats]

 

[Factorial]

I feel like I should think about becoming one of those "really into vinyl" dudes just because it would be a good fallback option when the wife asks what I want for my birthday. Being someone who's still really into the classics helps since back then "The Album" as a whole was so much more important.

This is the only JT record that I have. It has the fold out newspaper so I couldn't resist it for $2 or whatever it was long ago.

 

[Deport Ogie]

This is the only JT record that I have. It has the fold out newspaper so I couldn't resist it for $2 or whatever it was long ago.

I'm a pretty big JT fan but TaaB is probably my favorite and it's as much due to the story. The album previous was Aqualung which was obviously a YUGE commercial success and the press kept hounding Ian Anderson to admit it was a concept album. Anderson kept responding along the lines of "It's really not although it does have some shared themes blahblah" to the point that he got so annoyed that he then wrote Thick as a Brick basically as "Okay assholes, you want a concept album? Here's a 45 minute one song joke." It was created to deliberately spoof the prog pretension of Yes and ELP.

 

[BlindWillyMcHurt]

 

[CascadiaPenguin]

Yeah, as @BlindWillyMcHurt and I have talked about here, music making gear can also get kind of stupid like that. But being mostly deaf in an ear has really helped me save money on expensive home stereo stuff.

Mono rules, baby.

Binaural definitely rules more, but I can totally appreciate your perpsective.

Ear damage can really f*** up interpretation and spatial processing of what even the best-intending audio engineer tries to achieve. Find an copy of Kenny Burrell's Midnight Blue/1961 (I think). Most of what is out there is binaural even if falsely advertised as stereo in one of the various remasters. Listening in binaural with careful attenuation of levels between left and right, you may dig it and find it immersive as f***. As always, headphones work best.

Easiest way I can clumsily explain it, binaural is less demanding than stereo as positioning is NOT critical. In theory, binaural should sound the same irresepctive as to where one is in a listening area (loudspeakers, not headphones). Not the case with stereo as it demands you be at a point of a triangle for it to resolve as intended. At least mono doesn't give a shit, but binaural is a substantially more interesting and "live" to listen to. But if your bad ear is like down 20db or more, above, say 2,500 hz, we could be f***ed in this exercise, higher freqs are key to imaging and soundstage. I swear, I haven't smoked very much at all tonight. Thanks for enduring my ramble.

 

[tom_servo]

 

[HandshakeLine]

My god, the original version of "Hanging on the Telephone" is just so insanely good. No disrespect to Blondie who do a good version themselves, but the original just f***ing kills.

 

[Factorial]

One for @HandshakeLine. Not the cover by The Trashmen's but the original by The Rivingtons. In MONO to boot:

 

[dogthateats]

 

[Ugene Magic]

This is completely solid....

 

[Peat]

 

[Factorial]

 

[Peat]

 

[BlindWillyMcHurt]

Osees just put their whole new album up on YT a day early. In typical fashion it's a completely different direction from recent stuff. If you're a fan of old school anarcho-punk or just old punk in general... would recommend. Whole record is like 20 minutes lol

 

[HandshakeLine]

Getting some major crust punk/UK82 vibes here, @BlindWillyMcHurt . Hell yeah!

 

[BlindWillyMcHurt]

Getting some major crust punk/UK82 vibes here, @BlindWillyMcHurt . Hell yeah!

Right? It has a bit of that second wave/street punk vibe to it, for sure.

It's an album I didn't know I needed but am enjoying very much. Love these guys. I've always been at least fascinated by their output but I feel like they have really excelled the last 6ish years, in particular.

 

[HandshakeLine]

Right? It has a bit of that second wave/street punk vibe to it, for sure.

It's an album I didn't know I needed but am enjoying very much. Love these guys. I've always been at least fascinated by their output but I feel like they have really excelled the last 6ish years, in particular.

Dwyer's just such an absolute maniac. He basically just smokes weed every day and makes music and skateboards around LA. Talk about living the dream!

 

[BlindWillyMcHurt]

Dwyer's just such an absolute maniac. He basically just smokes weed every day and makes music and skateboards around LA. Talk about living the dream!

Some people just have it figured out.

All that and dude is pushin' 50, too.

 

[HandshakeLine]

Some people just have it figured out.

All that and dude is pushin' 50, too.

Still kills it on stage too. Like this is how the Rolling Stones should have turned out instead of whatever it is they vomited out from Some Girls onwards.

 

[BlindWillyMcHurt]

Still kills it on stage too. Like this is how the Rolling Stones should have turned out instead of whatever it is they vomited out from Some Girls onwards.

Oh I mean... that's the topper. As good as these studio records have all been lately... at their heart they are a live band.

Also... what... you didn't like Undercover?!?

(But no for real I agree but side 2 of Tattoo You had some jams, man)

 

[BlindWillyMcHurt]

Maybe sounds like a weird thing to say considering how many hits they had and how ubiquitous they were on the radio for a while but DAE find The Cars to be a little UNDERrated? They kind of started the New Wave movement but their songs also have a decided punk edge to them and going all the way back to their first record their production quality is top notch and super crisp. Also Elliot Easton is not talked enough about as a guitar player.

 

[Andy99]

The Cars are one of the top 5-8 post-punk bands of that late 70s, early 80s era. I don’t know who underrates them. Their debut album is among the top debut albums ever, just fantastic songs. Like a number of bands though, they got more commercial/pop as MTV became a force. Was not a fan of their stuff after their first couple albums

 

[HandshakeLine]

Easton is absolutely underrated as a guitarist and producer. His tiki album is also really really good. And I don’t say that lightly being a huge Arthur Lyman and tiki culture fan.

 

[tom_servo]

Nice set of hip hop songs from Black Thought (of the Roots) and Danger Mouse.