Tristan_Geoff

Guess not, can't find the profile.

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Emo/Pop Punk Journal

Techno Journal

Kedvesem

Well, I'm back. It's another weekend, and this time, in honour of Led Zeppelin winning their court case, we listened to three Led Zeppelin albums.

Led Zeppelin III



Led Zeppelin IV



Physical Graffiti


First of all, to address why not Led Zeppelin II, we listened to these while having beer (for Sir) and Malibu-Coke for me. Led Zeppelin II is for sexy times. Those pounding rhythms and overtly sexual lyrics ... if your girl is not turned on by Led Zeppelin II you probably have the wrong girl...

So, we were listening to music this evening while having a drink and looking after the baby. So we chose these three because we have these in physical format and because I love them--which is why we have them in physical format. (And I want Houses of the Holy for Christmas.)

Where to begin? There is simply too much depth in each and all of these albums for a little review to do them justice, so I will not try. Instead, I will simply choose a favourite moment from each of the three albums tonight, and try to explain why that particular moment touched me tonight.

First of all, for Led Zeppelin III, there was the moment the first notes of "Immigrant Song" played. There are few albums that can rival that opening, and I cannot think offhand of any that surpass it. The haunting call that opens it evokes beautifully the building passion of the Vikings seeking Valhalla and glory both now and later, here and there. For me, "Immigrant Song" encapsulates much of what I find so deeply moving about Led Zeppelin's music: their proud, unabashed celebration of a vibrantly pagan passion. In particular, there is a Nordic sense of the Ragnarok, the dark end that overshadows the present heroism, and lends it a brighter, if briefer, light.

I know I wrote above "a favourite moment", but I may cheat and do more than one.

Also on Led Zeppelin III there is "Tangerine". What can I write about this song? Nothing to be understood, perhaps, but when Robert Plant sings "I was her love, she was my queen/ And now a thousand years between" I see the lost and lonely lover. I see him, clear as I see my daughter asleep on the sofa across from me. I see that lost and lonely lover, his black hair tumbling around him, silvering as the centuries pass, his green eyes looking across centuries as across as a sea, and his queen not looking back.

I won't linger to write about "Gallows Pole", though I want to, because I still have two albums to cover...

Led Zeppelin IV. Different things strike me every time I listen to this album, and tonight when I heard "Battle of Evermore", once again I was floored by how brilliantly evocative their music is, of places I have never seen, times I have never lived, and yet places so real, times so present, that I cannot forget them.

"Stairway to Heaven"--Sir mentioned to me that he has heard many people talk about how "cliche" it is to say that "Stairway" is their best song, and I was immediately irritated because that is a misuse of the word "cliche", which denotes a phrase that has become trite due to overuse, and because it implies that if many people agree that "Stairway to Heaven" is the best Led Zeppelin song it cannot be the case because ... reasons.

The actual reason being that it is too popular an opinion to be "cool".

I do not really care if it is popular or not to think so (made easier because I rarely know the popular musical opinion on a topic unless Sir tells me), but I do know that I am not qualified to state whether or not "Stairway to Heaven" is their best song, but it is certainly one of them. It is a song that opens a vista to a place--how often they do this!--a place and time that are heartbreakingly lovely, and I am loath to leave it.

"When the Levee Breaks" made both my 17-year-old daughter and my 1-year-old son dance. What more could I desire in a song?

And now for Physical Graffiti. It was almost too much, as I had been worn out from the journeys of the previous two albums. "In My Time of Dying" was unexpectedly fragile. Sir has mentioned in the past that Robert Plant's voice is delicate even when he screams, and I noticed this a lot in Physical Graffiti.

But for me the highlight was "Kashmir". Its pulsing rhythm and melody, its opulence, pulled me from my seat. Everyone else was quiet. Most of the family was either asleep or out of the room. But I stepped onto the balcony and looked up at the overcast sky and simply listened, marvelling how the music swelled and bore me up, in a way it did not do under a roof.

Then I floated inside on the music and danced, feeling its richness welling up until it swept me away.

I am now quite drunk on Led Zeppelin's music. (Oddly enough, not on the Malibu-Coke, as I had only two.)

What a perfect Saturday night...

Zhanteimi

Great post!

I was worn out after listening to these three albums. I've never listened to three Zep albums in a row, and, boy, are they demanding! Great fun!

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Zhanteimi

LetsTalkMusic

Kedvesem

Well, today was just the usual, listening to whatever came up in Sir's rotation.

But then came Of Monsters and Men's My Head Is an Animal.

Oh yes.

Of Monsters and Men is one of my top five bands of ever, based on the strength of two albums: My Head Is an Animal and Beneath the Skin. Either one of those albums would be enough to bind my heart to the band's music with chains as strong as music itself. But both?





Their sound combines the raw inspiration of the selkie that Sigur Ros used to have, with the power of the Icelandic troll. It adds to this a mythopoeic lyricism that I find endlessly fruitful.

I can listen to Of Monsters and Men, and depending on my whim, I can explore the world of their sounds, the bright--indeed chiaroscuro level of contrast--world where their songs take place, that place where mythical beings are but commonplace, and yet still so powerful.

The lead singers, both male and female, can either one draw me in, whether the male with his understated power, or the female with her raw emotion. Together they weave an irresistible tapestry, telling stories that keep me spellbound for the duration of the album and beyond.

Or I can listen to Of Monsters and Men and take from them inspiration for the worlds of my own mind. There are few bands I can listen to that provide food for my rather particular imagination. Of Monsters and Men does that.

Their sound is rich, due to the large size of the band, but it is intimate, due to the demanding lyrics.

Of Monsters and Men is a band that I have never heard the like. There are other artists that can match their musicianship, sure. There are other artists that do what they do as well as Of Monsters and Men do what they do. But I do not know of any band who does what Of Monsters and Men do, let alone do it even a quarter as well.

There is a wealth of story in their songs, and I look forward to listening to them in the same way that I look forward to eating a rich slice of chocolate-peanut butter cheesecake. It is a rich treat.

Zhanteimi

TIL what chiaroscuro is.

I wish I could write reviews of albums as well as you do, my darling one. <3

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Zhanteimi

LetsTalkMusic

Kedvesem

Well, usually this journal is for music only, but this documentary about of Montreal had enough music to qualify.

Furthermore, Sir wanted me to review it, so...

The Past is a Grotesque Animal



All right, I was familiar with of Montreal before this. I have heard Sunlandic Twins and Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer? many times. (Sir loves them.) I have heard some of his (and I learned from the documentary that it is totally "his", not "their" music) other music, too, but I never thought it was anywhere near as good.

I have actually seen Kevin Barnes in concert, even. Considering I have been to fewer concerts than I have fingers, that is saying something. Furthermore, the venue was one of those super-tiny ones where you can nearly reach out to the stage. He was even hanging out in the upstairs bar beforehand. I thought at the time I could see in his face and in his carriage the same sense of insecurity and arrogance that suffuses his music.

(Incidentally, despite the release of other albums since then, nearly all the music he played at the concert was from Sunlandic Twins and Hissing Fauna. Even he knows they're his best.)

As I watched the documentary, I realized that Kevin Barnes is completely lacking in human empathy. He has no feeling for anyone. He is happy for anyone and everyone to be out of his life--providing he is the one who kicks them out. He does not like it when anyone leaves. He named his band for the girl "of Montreal" who broke up with him. He wrote his best albums in an attempt to get his wife and daughter back. Not that he really wants them. He doesn't seem to know what to do with them, or to enjoy them, when he has them. He just doesn't want them to leave him.

He reminds me of Bram Stoker, in that he has a piece of art that is miles ahead of any of his other work. Bram Stoker's Dracula is a masterpiece. Then his other works are competent, enjoyable if you like that sort of thing, but no more. The same seems to hold true for Kevin Barnes. His pair of breakup albums, Sunlandic Twins and Hissing Fauna, are excellent. The rest of his stuff seems to be competent, but nothing special.

During the documentary, several times he looked at the camera and freely acknowledged how he did not care about anyone. And he obviously meant it. He mentioned his dread of "adult responsibilities", which was so crippling he nearly had a nervous breakdown. He goes on in one scene about how this little cat postcard will not send him into a downward spiral. No, he will overcome the cat postcard.

I realized at that moment that what Kevin Barnes actually needs is perspective. As in, he should probably go work in a coal mine or something. He needs to have to do some real work, preferably physical labor, where no one cares about his "artistic" posturing. He is horribly insecure, something particularly repulsive in a man, and yet arrogant. He says that he doesn't care about "his legacy", but he brought it up apropos of nothing at least twice. The assumption that he will have a "legacy" is just staggering.

When the documentary ended, Sir looked at me, laughing, and said, "I'm going to listen to his whole discography."

I said, "He's a turd."

Zhanteimi

The documentary was pretty eye-opening. I knew the guy was a douche, but I had no idea to what extent.

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Zhanteimi

LetsTalkMusic

Kedvesem

Well, it has definitely been a long while since I last posted here. Sir is back, and I forum-stalk him as always. But I also have no particular place I have been keeping track of my Album of the Year candidates, except for a Little Twin Stars notebook.

I would rather be able to see them all in order and know what is currently in my Top Ten at any given time, so...

Tokumaru Shugo - Toss
1.36
I hate this. I hate this so much. If I could give negative stars, I would. This is Twee Pop, and "twee" is an insult.


Bat for Lashes - The Bride
1.75
This was just awful. She had an interesting concept for the concept album, but the execution was dreadful. She is supposed to be singing the pain of a woman who lost her fiance on the day of her wedding, but listening to her, I did not believe in her passion or her loss. She was simply dull. And whingey.


Paul Simon - Stranger to Stranger
1.91
I like Paul Simon. He has made some amazing albums. This is ... not one of them. It was lame. But he can have my wristband for free.


Bon Iver - 22, a Million
2.20
I like Justin Vernon, and his performance on Hadestown is one of my treasures. But this was just bad.


Steven Wilson - 4 1/2
2.33
There were a couple of good songs. Most of the rest were just mediocre.


Ray LaMontagne - Ouroboros
2.38
This was ... just dull. It was the first one we listened to, though, so I was still learning to rate the albums...


Dungen - Haxan
2.50
This one was more irritating than Ezra Furman overall, so he edged it out, despite their equal rating.


Ezra Furman - Big Fugitive Life
2.50
This one I was surprised to find I enjoyed as much as I did. I had watched his Glastonbury 2016 performance and was ... underwhelmed. He definitely needs to put his big boy panties on.


Goat - Requiem
2.62
Sir liked this a lot. I found much of it irritating, especially the female vocals. Ugh.


Sam Beam & Jesca Hoop - Love Letter for Fire
3.08
This was good. Some cheesy bits, but most pleasant.


Explosions in the Sky - The Wilderness
3.22
There were a couple of quite enjoyable songs, with most of the rest coming in at a solid 3. So if I were going over my whole music collection, this would not make it.


Lisa Hannigan - At Swim
3.27
Her work on Damien Rice's O is brilliant. Some of her other songs are also excellent. This album was ... good enough, I suppose.


Mutual Benefit - Skip a Sinking Stone
3.50
This was lovely. It reminded me a great deal of Love's Crushing Diamond, which is a good thing.


Leonard Cohen - You Want It Darker
3.56
My previous experience listening to Leonard Cohen has been underwhelming but unobjectionable (a U on the LPUC scale). Though most of this album was in the solid three range, there were a couple of stand-out songs that pulled the average up.


Sturgill Simpson - A Sailor's Guide to Earth
3.67
I enjoyed this quite a bit, but it is still my least favorite of his three albums.


Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds - Skeleton Tree
3.75
I liked his dark vibe throughout, and his cynicism resonates with me.


Devin Townsend Project - Transcendence
4.00
Though this has the exact rating as Sorceress, I moved it to an inferior position because, though it has more "great songs", it also has more weak songs, making it more uneven overall.


Opeth - Sorceress
4.00
I think that if I have a general "favorite genre", it's probably prog rock, whether from the classic era or now.


David Bowie - Blackstar
4.57
The only surprise for me with this is that it was not the absolute highest ranking I have. Dark and lovely as the Shulamite.


Wardruna - Runaljod-Ragnarok
5.00
This was sheer beauty when I first listened to it. It cleaned my clock. It was staggering.
Then I listened to it a second time, in a row with its two predecessors. It was a magical experience, an epic journey to the end of the world. I had already ranked the album five stars before that. Now it is probably the most perfect album I know. Intent and execution perfectly married and resulting in a tour de force that leaves me simultaneously whimpering for it to end and hoping it never does.

***

Sir and I still have over 30 albums (maybe more) to listen to between now and 31 December. That's ... a lot. I will keep posting up my ratings on those as we go, and I will do a complete Top Ten at the end.

Tristan_Geoff

KED!!! I missed your chemistry!!! You guys were so cute together on the forum! Glad both of you are back now

__________________
YW Fam: All MB Music Projects Under One Roof

Emo/Pop Punk Journal

Techno Journal

Kedvesem

Avantasia - Ghostlights
N/A
Well, Sir turned this off after a few songs. It was already proving itself to be a fine little 3, but no more. Just like the other Avantasia album I have heard (The Metal Opera), it was both melodic and metallic, but ... a bit cheesy. Metal does not do well with added cheese.

The Mercury Tree - Permutations
N/A
This was Generic Prog Album #237. It was not bad, but it was not particularly impressive either. So off it went a few songs in.

Teen Suicide - It's the Big Joyous Celebration, Let's Stir the Honeypot
1.85
Ugh. I wished this one had gotten turned off a few songs in. It was just a hot mess. It was terribly uneven, clashing even within its own crappy self. I could not wait for it to end.

King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard - Nonagon Infinity
3.78
I had heard this one earlier in the year. It was a lot of fun then, and the re-listening did not hurt the album. It was as good as I recalled it being. Solidly in the Top Ten so far.