#12 - Pink Floyd - The Wall (1979)
Strong 9/10
IF YA DON'T EAT YER MEAT, YA CAN'T HAVE ANY PUDDING! HOW CAN YA HAVE ANY PUDDING IF YA DON’T EAT YER MEAT?! This album might be Pink Floyd’s best work. It is far different from their past three albums and greatly surpasses them, in my opinion. I love how varied the composition of this album is. It’s also a lot heavier than past projects, while still leaving some of the psychedelic rock that made them famous. The guitar solos on this track are legendary, but they don’t feel like they overpower the lyrics, which is a feat for Pink Floyd as I felt they relied a little too heavily on these guitar solos. The vocals are very expressive, fitting Pink’s actions very well. The tracks each have incredible writing which pulls me right into the world of The Wall. I love how cinematic this album gets with each track. The concept of this album is tighter than any Pink Floyd album I’ve heard making me able to visualize it vividly. Even though there is a weaker third act, I can’t say that there are any real filler tracks on this album, which is not easy, especially for a longer album with many tracks like this one. The big problem that I’ve found with this album is that you can only listen to it as a full album. If you listened to a track, especially one of the shorter tracks on this album, you would likely get confused quickly as the songs bleed into each other and require context. This album’s water-tight flow is both a gift and a curse, as I feel it was made for vinyl only. All in all, this album is a masterpiece with some of the best music that Pink Floyd, rock and music in general has to offer.
Listen for yourself: https://youtu.be/x-xTttimcNk
#11 - The Microphones - The Glow, Pt. 2 (2001)
Strong 9/10
Well, well, well. Look what snuck onto the list this year just as the window was about to close! The Pepsi to In The Aeroplane Over The Sea's Coke! Jokes aside, this record is absolutely incredible! While I do question a few production choices on the record (Why aren't you showing up in the mix on such aggressive tracks, Phil?!), I think it was really well put together. I can't bring myself to stay mad at this album for a long period of time because the great parts vastly outweigh the bad parts that aren't even that bad. From a production standpoint, it is the gold standard of a multi-tracked album. Every instrument on this thing is used in the best possible way for an album like this one. Every sound that comes from an instrument is used to help the emotional core of the record, with my personal favourites being pianos and drums! The emotional core itself is amazing! With an often dejected Phil Elverum selling the sadness that comes post-breakup, we get one of the more emotional albums I listened to in 2020. Phil describes his grieving process here, which is almost uncomfortably relatable to me, mainly because I went through a pretty bad breakup myself. I found myself comparing my grieving process to that of Phil's. The Glow, Pt. 2 really resonated with me emotionally due to those comparisons and how relatable and real Phil and this story are. That emotional resonance is the main selling point of this record. With a cohesive story rivalling that of To Pimp A Butterfly's (and I don't compare that record to just anything), I can see why people in music circles love this so much. Wow, this record is fantastic!
Listen for yourself: https://youtu.be/dvw9tuK9has
#10 - Billy Talent - Afraid of Heights (2016)
Strong 9/10
To kick off my Top 10 list, we have my favourite album from a band that refuses to leave this list and my heart. Sure, the reprise of the title track is a bad closer that doesn't really do as much different from the original title track, especially lyrically. Beyond that, I adore Billy Talent's Afraid of Heights. Who cares about one song that's a little lacklustre when this album has some of the greatest songs Billy Talent has ever made?! The production is the tightest of any Billy Talent record. Everyone is always given something to do, which really emphasizes the “team effort” philosophy that makes Billy Talent such a well-oiled music machine. The mixing on this thing makes every instrument so clear. Vocal production is, of course, on top and on point. Ben is always present, with D'Sa and Gallant's harmonies backing him up but never stepping over Ben to be heard. The composition is also Billy Talent's best. They're an alternative punk band, so it's always heavy, but they really balance hot and cool well, especially on songs like Rabbit Down The Hole or Leave It All Behind. This album both succeeds at being soft and somber and at being large and present. The hooks are always incredible. Ian D'Sa has always had a penchant for writing incredible guitar licks that serve as the focal point of Billy Talent songs that get built upon as the song goes along. This is no exception here, in fact, the emotional core of the composition has never been better. Speaking of emotional core, I have been impacted by this record's lyrics since my first listen when I was 15! Yes, this album was released in 2016 and is a product of its time, offering the Canadian, often liberal perspective to controversial American issues such as gun control on Big Red Gun, the rise of nationalism on This is Our War and the Syrian refugee crisis on February Winds. I'd argue that these songs and stances have stood the test of time four years later. But Billy Talent is not satisfied with just political anthems. There are more abstract political issues such as climate change, as well as love songs, songs about addiction, and mental health. There's even a song about the glory days of rock music that's actually hopeful about the future of the genre as opposed to the whole “modern music sucks” nonsense! This record has it all, and as such, I have long made this record an emotional staple. I have laughed and cried with this record and it has gotten me through both good and bad times in my life. I have made this record the soundtrack of my high school years as many other Canadians before me have made Billy Talent part of theirs. No matter where I go with my musical adventures, this record will always be a part of my home base. And with a new Billy Talent record coming after this pandemic that promises to be even better than this one, it makes me hopeful that this band can build upon this record to do something legendary. They have improved themselves on this record and their work before this. It is albums like these that cement an act as “favourite band” material. This album is just fantastic and I will gladly carry it with me for the rest of my life.
Listen for yourself: https://youtu.be/XPla6GrM3WM
#9 - Neutral Milk Hotel - In The Aeroplane Over The Sea (1998)
Strong 9/10
Everybody knows and loves /mu/’s darling and it's not hard to see why as Neutral Milk Hotel writes an eclectic yet engaging story in In The Aeroplane Over The Sea. This album is packed to the brim with passionate instruments and passionate vocals. This vibe is helped very much by its production. It is overwhelming and overblown from front to back, and it really works! This vibe is constant throughout, but it manifests itself in the ebb and flow between loud and quiet of this record's composition. This record's production is bursting at the seams, and yet is quite watertight. It is the best produced Neutral Milk Hotel project, but it doesn't stray away from the lo-fi style that is central to their sound. The acoustic guitar songs are really intimate and it really adds to my enjoyment of the record while the louder songs are gigantic. I believe that this album is the better lo-fi indie record compared to the other titan in this genre, The Glow, Pt. 2, mainly because of how this record is produced. Holland, 1945 is a great example of how raw, explosive energy is handled on Aeroplane, which decisively trumps The Glow, Pt. 2, in my opinion. Speaking of musical explosions, In The Aeroplane Over The Sea is chock full of them, and they all sound great. A properly used fuzz bass sets the tone on faster tracks. Acoustic guitar carries the prettier tracks and they are really raw and impacting as Jeff Mangum sings his heart out over his guitar. The brass adds an old-fashioned aspect to the record and it's really full and dense. While I believe transitions could be streamlined, the flow of this record is amazing, and it puts a nice foundation under the storytelling of the lyrics. Jeff Mangum always gives 110% with his vocals, to the point where I was scared he might strain himself too much and hurt himself. But his raw, untrained and untamed vocal delivery really adds to the raw aesthetic that makes this record work. The most memorable aspect of this record is the lyrics. The writing is surreal and slightly abstract, but is full of detail and is never pretentious. These lyrics paint a beautifully vivid and unique atmosphere and tell stories that are as vivid as they are emotionally impactful. As for the story, it was inspired by the story of Anne Frank as well as songwriter and frontman Jeff Mangum’s lamentation for Anne's tragic death in the Holocaust. While not explicitly expressing his love for Anne Frank, Jeff Mangum illustrates love for her from the characters he writes about, such as romantic love from a Two-Headed Boy, as well as Jeff wanting to save her with a time machine on Oh Comely. But despite all this, I feel as though this record is a goodbye. This record is Jeff Mangum's goodbye to Anne Frank, and to the Neutral Milk Hotel project as a whole. While Neutral Milk Hotels tenure has been short it has been incredibly impactful, and this record is its centrepiece. Who knows what a talent like Jeff Mangum could have done if he kept making music? But he declined as he felt that he said everything he could say. All you can do about it is respect his decision, wish him well and keep marvelling at his past work, as albums like these will never go away. I know I certainly won't stop listening!
Listen for yourself: https://youtu.be/1FeD16vu_qQ
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