Favorite Albums: 68 - 67

So, yeah, I'm only, what, 3 days late or so? No big deal. Ha. This is going to be a horrible entry, fair warning. 4 hours sleep since Monday does not make for a coherent mind, so.. yeah... it's not going to be pretty.

68. Twice Upon a Time

I started this on May 20th. That's how far I got. It's now May 27th. Time to quit slacking!

68. Twice Upon a Time: The Singles by Siouxsie and the Banshees (1992)

This was the second singles collection from the Banshees, and it includes every single from 1982 - 1992. From start to finish this is just an awesome collection, with one exception, which we'll get to later. It's all in chronological order, as collections like this should be, so it gives a really nice sense of how the band grew over a decade. "Fireworks" kicks things off with a bang, a very high energy song, very good. "Slowdive" is another pretty good tune. A little slower and less frantic than "Fireworks", but not much. Very similar feel, actually. "Melt!" is next, a very pretty very mellow song. Love it. Next is their cover of The Beatles' "Dear Prudence", and it is bad ass. I actually like this version more than the original, personally. Just a very good version. "Swimming Horses" is a really cool song, and not just because Robert Smith was in the band at the time. (This song, "Dear Prudence", and the next song were all from the album that Robert appeared on while The Cure were on hiatus.) Nifty tune. "Dazzle" was the song that made me like Siouxsie and the Banshees. I'd heard other stuff by them, and thought they were okay, but this is the song that made me a fan. Love it. "Overground" is a very cool atmospheric song. Dig it very much. "Cities In Dust" is one of the band's most known songs, and is a really good one. It has a nice mix of standard Siouxsie and the Banshees and pure pop, which gels better than it seems it would. "Candy Man" is a decent song, but kind of forgettable. Not bad by any means, just kind of gets lost in the shuffle. "This Wheel's On Fire" is kind of the same way. It's not quite as good as "Candy Man", but also not a bad song at all. again, just gets lost in the mix. "The Passenger" is next, another cover song, this time of the awesome Iggy Pop tune. This is another great cover, and to be quite honest, I didn't know until a few years after I got this CD that this was a cover song. Never really listened to Iggy Pop and the Stooges before. My bad. Killer song. Next up is the first song I ever heard by Siouxsie and the Banshees, at least, first one that I knew who I was listening to. "Peek-A-Boo" is just an infectiously catchy song, from the beat to the vocals to the music. Just an awesome song. "The Killing Jar" is probably the most surprisingly unappreciated Siouxsie song ever. Just a great great song. "The Last Beat Of My Heart" is next, in a live version recorded during the first Lollapalooza tour. The album version is way better, in my opinion, but the live version is still pretty kick ass. One of the most beautiful songs ever. "Kiss Them For Me" was the biggest U.S. hit for Siouxsie and the Banshees, and is still a killer song even now. "Shadowtime" is yet another one of those songs that I always forget about, then play several times in a row because I forgot how much I like it. Good stuff. "Fear (Of the Unknown)" is the only weak part of this album. The actual album version is really good, but this is some remixed dance club version that is just annoying. If they had put the regular version, it would have been much better. The final song is "Face To Face" from the Batman Returns soundtrack. It is just an unbelievably beautiful and sad and wonderful song, and still my favorite by them. Outstanding. Overall, this album rules, if you can deal with (or skip) the one truly bad song. But really, one bad song out of 18 is a pretty good ratio.
5 Best Songs:
5. "Overground"


4. "Fireworks"


3. "The Passenger"


2. "Dazzle"


1. "Face To Face"


67. Genesis by Genesis (1983)

This was the last Genesis album before they went strictly pop, containing just enough of their artsy prog rock roots to keep old fans happy, but more than enough pop whimsy to attract new fans. It was a bit too much for one nine track album to accomplish, yet it is still a really great album. It starts off with the crazy, eerie "Mama", which is seen by a lot of critics and fans as the third song in a trilogy, along with Phil Collins' two solo songs, "In the Air Tonight" and "I Don't Care Anymore". It's very similar both musically (very sparse, with heavy emphasis on the percussion for most of the song) and vocally, more chanted than sung. Good song. It's odd, though, to go from "Mama" into "That's All", because the change in mood is so stark. Yes, "That's All" is still angry lyrically, but the poppy circus like music just feels odd after "Mama". The next two songs, "Home By the Sea" and "Second Home By the Sea", are brilliant. They tell the story of someone who goes into a house (or buys it, or something) and encounters a ghost, only to become one himself, trapped in the residence for eternity. This is old school Peter Gabriel type Genesis, and it kicks ass. "Illegal Alien" is easily the worst song on this album. It isn't that bad in concept - the struggles of an illegal Latino immigrant trying to provide for his family and not get shipped out of the country. It's the way Collins sings it that makes it a bad song. He sounds like he's trying to do a bad Mexican accent, and it just comes off horribly. Bad Phil. Bad. "Taking It All Too Hard" is a really pretty break up song, like it very much. "Just a Job To Do" is the only song on this album that was not released as a single or b-side, and it was the only song from the album not played live during the tour for this album. Makes no sense on either count, because it's a really strong song, one of the best Genesis songs nobody has heard. "Silver Rainbow" is a really good song, I think, but it is always ripped by critics. I dig it. The final song is "It's Gonna Get Better", the only really hopeful song on this surprisingly dark album. It's a pretty song, and a good way to close the album out. Overall, I think this is one of the best Genesis albums around. It is fairly steady, and even with how dark the lyrics are it's really easy to listen to and get lost in. Highly recommended.
5 Best Songs:
5. "It's Gonna Get Better'


4. "Silver Rainbow"


3. "Just a Job To Do"


2. "Home By the Sea"


1. "Second Home By the Sea"

Favorite Albums: 88 - 87

Almost didn't think I was going to get to this one today, because Sebastian actually slept like 10 hours last night, so he hasn't taken a nap yet today. Just put him in his jumper thing so I could get this done, though, so he will probably be asleep before I finish the first album, because that thing knocks him right out.

88. Invisible Touch by Genesis (1986)

I know I'll take some heat for this one, but that's fine. This is one of only two Genesis albums that I like all the way through. I like a lot of their music, but there's also a lot that I don't like. This one, though, I like every song on. The title track starts things off, and it is probably the weakest song on the album, although it isn't bad at all. In fact, it is the only #1 song Genesis has ever had in the United States. "Tonight, Tonight, Tonight" is next, an extremely atmospheric song about trying to score some weed. (Seriously.) "Land Of Confusion" had one of the coolest videos of its time, all the puppets of world leaders and stuff. It's basically a protest song about nuclear arms and corrupt governments. "In Too Deep" is one of the two ballads on the album, and while it's good, the other one's better. "Anything She Does" is one of only two songs on this album that didn't get any radio exposure. It's not a bad song, but it's a tad too generic to be anything special. "Domino" is the next song, split into two parts. It is basically telling of the aftermath of a nuclear holocaust. The first half is "In the Glow Of the Night", a slow beautiful song that I completely forgot about when I was doing my favorite songs list, because it really should have been on there. The second half, "The Last Domino", is a much more fast tempo song, and much angrier and more cynical. ("Now you never did see/ Such a terrible thing/ As was seen last night on the TV./ Maybe if we're lucky/ They will show it again/ Such a terrible thing to see.") Even though this song was never released as an actual single, and despite the fact that when both parts are played consecutively it has a running time of 10 minutes 44 seconds, it still managed to reach number 29 on the Mainstream Rock Charts in the UK. "Throwing It All Away" is the other ballad, far superior to "In Too Deep" I think. Just a killer song. The final song is the other song that never got any air play, the instrumental "The Brazilian". It is more of an artsy, experimental song, much like the band created when Peter Gabriel was the lead singer. It is a very cool song, although it does get a bit repetitive after a while. Overall, this was just a great album. Loved it then, still love it now.
5 Best Songs:
5. "Land Of Confusion"


4. "In Too Deep"


3. "Throwing It All Away"


2. "Tonight, Tonight, Tonight" (Starts around the 1:45 mark)


1. "Domino: Pt 1 - In the Glow Of the Night/Pt 2 - The Last Domino"
Pt 1 (Starts at 2:17 but the intro part is amusing) (Saw this tour, in '92, and the video screen behind them was amazing in person, especially on part 2 of this song. Only concert I ever saw at the original Cleveland Stadium.)

Pt 2



87. 101 Damnations by Carter the Unstoppable Sex Machine (1990)

This could not be any more different from the album above if it tried. Carter USM (as they were forced to be known in the US after their second album, 30 Something) were just two guys (Jim Bob and Fruitbat) with some samplers, a drum machine, a keyboard, and a couple guitars. I first heard them when they were opening for EMF. Should have been the other way around, because they blew EMF out of the water. 101 Damnations was their debut, and it was just a bad ass album. It starts off with "Road To Domestos", a quick little intro, basically, only about 50 seconds long, just people singing what sounds like a hymn. "Everytime a Churchbell Rings" is the first proper song, about several people killing themselves for various reasons, except the narrator, who ends up walking away at the end. "24 Minutes From Tulse Hill" is any insanely paced song about a demonic runaway train. "An All-American National Sport" is a disturbing little number about two guys burning a homeless man alive. Sheriff Fatman" is about the worst possible slum lord you could ever think of, just a total scum bag. "The Taking Of Peckham 1... 2... 3..." is next. The title is a play on The Taking Of Pelham 123 (the original version, obviously) but that's the only relation it has to the movie. It is basically about a bunch of crimes committed in a shitty neighborhood. LOVE this song. "Crimestoppers A-Go-Go" is an instrumental track. They put one on every album, and while none of them are that great, none are that bad, either. "Good Grief Charlie Brown" is about the correspondence between the mother and son in a highly dysfunctional family, and is just a phenomenal song. "Midnight On the Murder Mile" is probably the most forgettable song on the album. It seems like a cross between several of the other songs here, and never really gets its own identity. "A Perfect Day To Drop the Bomb" tries too hard to take on too many issues, many of which aren't even understood outside of the UK, but the driving music and passion with which it's sung make it an enjoyable song regardless. The final song is "G.I. Blues", an obvious anti-war song. It is just a great song, told from the perspective of an injured soldier (First line: "Both my arms and legs are torn to shreds."), and how he doesn't want his loved ones seeing him as the mangled mess he's become. Love this album. Really need a CD version, because my cassette is kind of warped after 20 years.
5 Best Songs:
5. "Sheriff Fatman"


4. "Everytime a Churchbell Rings" With a full choir on stage for "Road to Domestos")


3. "Good Grief Charlie Brown"


2. "G.I. Blues"


1. The Taking Of Peckham 1... 2... 3..."
Only one version on YouTube, and embedding is disabled. Here's the link. Hope it works.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9CNgRKKNT6s
Gotta do the copy and paste thing. Hope it works. If not... sorry.

Favorite Albums: 140 - 139

140. Transnational Speedway League: Anthems, Anecdotes, and Undeniable Truths by Clutch (1993)

Nice concise title, huh? Ha. This is a great album to listen to when you're pissed. The lyrics themselves aren't exactly angry for the most part, but the music is just driving and forceful. The lyrics, on almost all the songs, are actually hilarious, especially set to hard rock. On "El Jefe Speaks," for instance, you have the following line: "Like a fly to doo-doo, you need me like a bird needs wings. Or Little Bunny Foo Foo who needs to bop the field mice, so all the kids can sing." Naturally, this is sung in a gravelly metal voice. Funny shit. Then there's "12 Ounce Epilogue" which is pretty much announcing Coca Cola as the official drink of the apocalypse. "Binge and Purge" is probably one of the angriest songs ever. It starts off kind of mellow, a nice simple drum and bass line, mainly. Then, about half way through, it just erupts into pure assault. Basically this album is divided into two types of songs - angry yet funny, and just angry. Not much else to say about it, I guess. Like I said, just a great album to listen to when you're pissed.
5 Best Songs:
5. "Effigy"
4. "Binge and Purge"
3. "12 Ounce Epilogue"
2. "Heirloom 13"
1. "Milk Of Human Kindness"

Zero points for creativity on these videos, but the sound quality is awesome.
"12 Ounce Epilogue"


"Heirloom 13"


"Milk Of Human Kindness"


139. Turn It On Again: The Hits by Genesis (1999)

So, if you remember the review of the Phil Collins greatest hits album a couple posts ago, you can pretty much take the major parts of that and apply them here. Again, it's hard to listen to this without expecting to hear some of Collins' solo hits, just because it sounds so similar. This is a better compilation than Collins' greatest hits album, though, as there are only two songs I'd switch out. I know they put "Congo" on to have at least one song sung by the guy who replaced Phil Collins after he left, but damn is that a crappy song. Replace that with any damn thing, or just drop it entirely. Preferably, throw either "Home By the Sea" or "Second Home By the Sea" in there, though. The other song I'd switch would be "Hold On My Heart." Not a great song, and there are three other songs from the same album included, so why not put "Man On the Corner," a vastly superior song, in its place? The obvious highlight on this album is "The Carpet Crawlers 1999" which brought Peter Gabriel back to the group for the first time in 25 years, but I already got into that on the songs list, so... Moving along. The only other Gabriel era song on the album is "I Know What I Like (In Your Wardrobe)" but it's kind of understandable, since they were more of an artsy band when he was the leader, not really making radio friendly music. The only times the album seems to lag are during "Hold On My Heart" and "No Son Of Mine." Partially it's because they are two of only four slow songs out of 18 on the album, the others being "In Too Deep" and the stellar "Throwing It All Away," but it's also partly because I hate those two songs, so I'm kind of biased. But hey, it's my list, so I'm allowed to be, right? Basically, if you take this album and Phil Collins' ...Hits, you'll have a great retrospective of his career from the late '70s through the '90s. Both could have been better, but not by much so it's all good.
5 Best Songs:
5. "Abacab"
4. "The Carpet Crawlers 1999"
3. "Throwing It All Away"
2. "Mama"
1. "Follow You, Follow Me"

"Throwing It All Away"


"Mama"


"Follow You, Follow Me"