Non-Metal Music

Thrust - "Mindless" (1990)

The sole full-length from this melodic hardcore/skate punk outfit from my adopted stomping ground of the Gold Coast. It's very well produced & executed & has a bit of a heavy metal edge to it at times too.

For fans of The Ramones, Bad Religion & Motorhead.

King Tubby - "Herb Dub-Collie Dub" (1976)

A collection of instrumental dub remixes of tracks by The Skatalites. I quite like it too, particularly the more minimal, stripped back material which is druggy as fuck.

For fans of Augustus Pablo, Scientist & Prince Jammy.

3.5/5

Bobby Bland - "Two Steps from the Blues" (1961)

The highly regarded debut album from this soulful Texan rhythm & blues singer that I find to be a little too inconsistent & (perhap unsurprisingly) bland for my liking.

For fans of Syl Johnson, Freddie King & Little Milton.

3/5

Electric Six - Fire (2003)

Whenever the weight of the world gets too much then I find myself turning to the sheer infectious stupidity of Fire to lift my spirits. It has worked its magic again today.

The Byrds - "Fifth Dimension" (1966)

I quite enjoy the third album from this Los Angeles outfit who had previously played in the poppy folk rock space but this time appear with a brand-new sound that may well represent the first psychedelic rock release ever to see the light of day. There are a few duds spread across the eleven tracks on offer but they're comfortably outweighed by the stronger material with the incredible "I Come and Stand at Every Door" being the clear highlight for me personally.

For fans of Dusty Springfield, Jefferson Airplane & Love.

3.5/5

I just went on a Fairport Convention marathon today.  Here are my ratings:

1. Fairport Convention - fun and catchy, sounds like a lot of folk albums from that era but with the healthy spirit needed to get noticed.  82

2. What We Did on Our Holidays - This boasted the spirit I was hoping to find in a classic folk rock band that the music community loves.  It has quite a few different types of beautiful songs and some incredible shared vocals between the band members.  96

3. Unhalfbricking - This is where they go for a more straightforward and traditional folk sound, rocking their instrumentals while handing full vocal duty to Sandy Denny.  This new format doesn't have quite the same originality as before, but for a traditional-stayle folk album, this features some wonderful instrumentation and a magical feel.

4. Liege and Lief - A more traditional album.  It boasts all of the strengths of the previous album with one flaw: it's a bit more drawn out for the same length range.  92

5. Full House - Even though Denny's departure was beyond unfortunate, the band largely made up for that with some beautiful and yet surprisingly poppy tunes that don't break new ground but constantly entertain.  91.

6. Angel Delight - And this is where the scars are showing.  The group is still writing pretty enjoyable tunes in the long run, but the magic seems largely missing in the first half, and the progressive aspects don't carry melody well.  72.

Sparks - "№ 1 in Heaven" (1979)

The eighth full-length from this Los Angeles pop act sees them championing a sound that combines electro, disco & pop for a result that comes across as very European. In fact, I'd suggest that it possesses a bit of a Eurovision Song Contest vibe which can't be a good thing as a lot of the album is simply too cheesy for my lactose-intolerant ears to cope with. 

For fans of Kraftwerk, Gina X Performance & Explorer.

2.5/5

Sunday in the Park with George, wow that brings back some memories. I'm not a fan of the whole Show-Tunes Broadway style, but "Finishing the Hat" is a phenomenal and moving tune.

Frank Zappa - "Hot Rats" (1969)

Frank Zappa's debut solo album & I have had a rocky relationship over the years & that's still largely the case today. I'm not a fan of half of the six songs on offer however the record is saved by the fact that the other three are much lengthier & more substantial than the shorter pieces. The sound of "Hot Rats" sees Frank combining jazz & rock for a result that straddles both jazz fusion & jazz rock very nicely but the dial is certainly directed further towards the jazz side of the equation than it is the rock one in my opinion. Zappa's guitar improvisation is my personal highlight so I tend to go for the more expansive arrangements where he gets to really open up. It's not a bad listen but I can't say that it fares all that well alongside other jazz fusion records of the time, at least not for me personally.

For fans of Soft Machine, Mahavishnu Orchestra & Allan Holdsworth.

3.5/5

Throbbing Gristle - "At the Factory, Manchester" (1979)

This live album is highly regarded in terms of the early industrial scene & you can easily see why too as it presents one of the coldest & most barren visions of the world you're likely to find. There are some fabulous highlights included here but there's also a bit of inconsistency as the line that Throbbing Gristle tip toe along between pure noise & genius is a difficult one to get exactly right. Still,,, the wins easily outweigh the losses so I find myself coming out of the experience (& it IS an experience) feeling largely fulfilled.

For fans of Psychic TV, Cabaret Voltaire & Nurse With Wound.

3.5/5

Eric B. & Rakim - "Follow the Leader" (1988)

The follow-up album to 1987's highly praised "Paid In Full" debut album is a very strong example of the early hip hop sound. Rakim's rapping is excellent & is the main driver behind the duo's success. The opening title track is one of the greatest tracks in hip hop history in my opinion. The overall consistency in the tracklisting means that there's a only a bee's dick between "Follow the Leader" & Public Enemy's classic "It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back" sophomore album that was released just a month earlier which should give you an indication of the overall quality of offer here.

For fans of Boogie Down Productions, EPMD & Big Daddy Kane.

4/5

Fripp & Eno - "(No Pussyfooting)" (1973)

The first of four full-length collaborations between King Crimson guitarist Robert Fripp & Roxy Music keyboardist & ambient music legend Brian Eno. It comprises of two lengthy pieces, both around the twenty minute mark. Fripp's contribution comes in the form of extended jazz fusion improvisations which present the listener with an element of danger given that he takes plenty of melodic risks, often straying in terms of key but ultimately coming across as more inventive than incompetent. Eno's accompaniments were pretty groundbreaking for the time. "The Heavenly Music Corporation" is a twenty-one minute drone piece while nineteen-minute closer "Swastika Girls" falls more into the tape music category given that it's built from a short tape loop that's repeated throughout the full length of the piece. Both are high-quality efforts that keep me well entertained throughout & have seen me returning to Fripp & Eno's debut a number of times over the years.

For fans of Brian Eno, Harold Budd & Cluster.

4/5

Underground Resistance - "World 2 World" E.P. (1992)

Another old Detroit techno record that I owned back in my DJ days & still have in my vinyl collection today. "World 2 World" is extremely highly regarded in techno circles but I've always found it to be a bit up & down personally. Of the four tracks included, I only really enjoy two. I played closer "Greater Than Yourself" live on multiple occasions as it really fit into my sound well while I also dropped "Jupiter Jazz" once as I have some time for it too. "Amazon" & "Cosmic Traveler" don't do a lot for me to be honest so I don't often reach for this E.P. when I have wonderful records like 1991's "The Final Frontier" to take me back to the golden age of techno.

For fans of The Martian, Drexciya & Galaxy 2 Galaxy.

3/5

Sixteen Horsepower - "Low Estate" (1997)

I thought I'd give this sophomore album a crack after really enjoying 1996's excellent "Sackcloth 'n' Ashes" album & it's subsequently delivered, if to a slightly lesser extent. The band's sound is very similar to the debut but there are definitely less highlight tracks & the material is a little more subtle & less immediate too. The main thing that sees "Low Estate" scoring a touch lower than its elder sibling is the drop in quality that occurs over the final third of the tracklisting though as the first two thirds offer some very solid gothic country indeed. Front man David Eugene Edwards is once again the highlight with his whiny tone piercing through the mix like a sharp knife. He's fucking fantastic & is what makes Sixteen Horsepower so unique.

For fans of Wovenhand, Slim Cessna's Auto Club & Calexico.

3.5/5

Igor Stravinsky & the New York Philharmonic - "Le sacre du printemps" (1940)

I enjoyed this highly praised piece of modern classical this week with its bright production job & stunningly original arrangement holding up really well all these years later. There's a darkness to this orchestral ballet that must have been quite intimidating at the time & I find it inconceivable that an individual has had the breadth of mind to produce something so significant with such a disparate array of different melodic parts. I'd imagine that it would certainly have helped that the composer is also conducting the orchestra here as his vision is beautifully realised. The influence on some of the great soundtracks of more modern times is obvious too ("Star Wars" in particular).

For fans of Sergei Prokofiev, Béla Bartók & Arnold Schoenberg.

3.5/5

T-Bone Walker - "T-Bone Blues" (1959)

T-Bone's debut album is a legendary release for the Texas electric blues scene but I have to admit that I find it to be a little flat. Much of this material is so faithful to the traditional blues model & I tend to find records that stick to the tried & tested blues structure to be a touch boring. I need a bit more edge than this to be honest, preferring a more consistently "deep" or rock-infused blues sound.

For fans of Freddie King, Albert King & Lightnin' Hopkins.

3/5

Cocteau Twins - "Head Over Heals" (1983)

I've returned to this excellent sophomore album from Scottish ethereal wave/ gothic rock outfit a couple of times over the last year as I've had a real soft spot for it since the mid-1990's when I used to frequent goth clubs every weekend with the rest of the Sydney extreme metal scene. Each time I hear it I'm reminded of just how similar Elizabeth Frazer's vocals are to my all-time favourite metal front woman in The Gathering's Anneke van Giersbergen, so much so that I can't help but feel that she was a total worshipper of records like this one. The dark opening track "When Mama Was Moth" is quite frankly one of the best pieces of music ever written while the rest of the ten-song tracklisting includes a string of very strong efforts, none of them living up to the thrill of the opener but still flexing their creative muscles nicely nonetheless. There are a couple of flat moments here though in the disappointing "Glass Candle Grenades" & "Multifoiled" but the wins easily outweigh the losses to make for a highly compelling listen & one that would put the new darkwave genre on the map.

For fans of Lowlife, Slowdive & early Dead Can Dance.

4/5

Georges Brassens - "2ème série [Le vent]" (1954)

The highly regarded sophomore album from this widely acclaimed French singer/songwriter. I threw it on while playing with my one year-old daughter yesterday & it certainly has its moments. I do think that you need to speak French to fully grasp the appeal though as it's heavily driven by the story-telling aspect so it ended up falling a bit flat, despite its incredibly short run time of just 23 minutes.

For fans of Renaud, Jacques Brel & Jacques Higelin.

3/5

I just finished the Motley Crue movie The Dirt again.  For a generic rock biopic, it's got legit acting and some seriously powerful, if not potentially NC-17, humor.

That movie inspired me to check out the three Wildside albums.

1. Under the Influence.  Would've been a moderate success if the group formed six years earlier.  Sleaze rock didn't get far.  86/100

2. Wildside.  So now they're ripping off Alice in Chains the year after Cobain killed himself and the grunge scene?  52/100

3. Formerly Known as Young Gunns.  More of the first, but a little more generic.  Not bad.  Not done yet, halfway, but for this first half but I'm thinking about a 73/100.

8. Frank Zappa
Genres: Exp. Rock, Jazz-Rock, Jazz Fusion, Comedy Rock

When I was first getting into albums, Freak Out was my first venture into experimental rock, and I loved every effed-up second of it. That raw level of boldness in Zappa's music is justified by his absurd personality. The guy knows how to write what's potentially the worst music on Earth, and make it more fun than a drunken night out on the town. And why? Why did we need Zappa? Simple. Sometimes, we just need to let loose.

Freak Out!: 100
Hot Rats: 100
Apostrophe: 100
Over-Nite-Sensation: 99
Joe's Garage, Act I: 97

Score: 99.2 / 5
Staying Score: 100

Didn't you say that you were separating Frank Zappa's solo work from the Mothers of Invention releases Rex? "Freak Out!" was the debut album from the Mothers & I'm pretty sure that "Over-Nite Sensation" is also considered to be a Mothers release.

There's the "Rule of Names."

Before I post this, I must note that there has been an update to the rules that I forgot to mention. Because certain bands like say "Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers" are also counted as part of an artist's main career, there will be a "namesake rule" that states that a solo act can count their time with a band as part of their major career, especially since some bands continue without their frontman, and can still be two separate entries, such as the difference between The Mothers of Invention and Frank Zappa. Thus, the band and the frontman can have two separate entries. This does not count for duets like Simon and Garfunkel, but for a frontman and a named band sharing album title credits.

The Mothers of Invention are also known all over the internet as "Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention."  This rule is based on the notion that the band itself is just as relevant to the solo artist's career under his name.  This means that Zappa can count his time with The Mothers under his slot, and Tom petty can do so as well.  But this is only true if extra credit to the frontman is established by name in the fanbase or the album releases.  Nobody really refers to Petty's band as just, "The Heartbreakers."  Alice Cooper could do the same thing had he made it, and "The Alice Cooper Band" would have a separate entry as well.  RYM does this, too, and it was pretty obvious why.

Cool list, Rex! Though if I make my own list in this thread, it would all just be metal, and I wouldn't have to write my top 20 when it's already in the "top 20 releases" feature.

Personally, I'd be down to play there knowing what I know now, but my vocalist is a much less forgiving about these kinds of things. We are going to compare notes at practice, explain points of view and make a team decision.

Cool tune and I like Album cover too. Delightfully goofy! Quiet Riot 2 Was only released in Japan, so I always associated "Slick Black Cadillac" with Metal Health Album-they re-recorded it for that. 

So I went back to investigate, and yes the Quiet Riot II version is balls. It's not worlds different but it's weaker than the Metal Health version by a significant amount.

I've going to opt to replace Plasmatics' "The Damned" as I've never had much time for it & are going to nominate Randy Holden's "Fruit & Iceburgs" from the former Blue Cheer & The Other Half guitarist's debut solo album "Population II". It was one mean motherfucker of a psychedelic doom metal monster for 1970 in my opinion.

1. Three Dog Night "Momma Told me Not to Come"

2. Pentagram "Be Forewarned

3. Alice Cooper "Desperado"

4. Randy Holden - "Fruit & Iceburgs"

5. Holy Moses "Satans Angel"

6. Savage Master "Queen Satan"

7. Satyricon "Black Crow on a Tombstone"

8. Venom "Witching Hour"

Hi, Ben. Thanks for adding those Blue Stahli albums I've requested. Now for one more thing... It seems you've overlooked my earlier request to add Celldweller's non-metal album Offworld to bridge the gap in their discography. Could you please add that soon? Thanks again!

Totally respect that. Crunkcore is among my least favorite genres of all time, but I'd be totally open to hearing an album in the genre that is actually enjoyable. Maybe I'll give it a shot just for fun.

I actually love it when one of my least favorite genres features an album I find amazing.  Nadja helped me explore some more of my least favorite metal genre: drone.

Just finished up a Cult Member marathon in my outsider house ventures.  This guy understands the balance between atmosphere and complex beats.  Not quite on par with Cross by Justice, but it maintains a consistent sound through various influences and surprises with plenty of complexity. There are acid techno songs which fit perfectly in this ambient / outsider house sound.

Vinnie Moore - "Meltdown" (1991)

I picked up Vinnie Moore's third album on CD shortly after it was released given that I was a big fan of his 1986 debut album "Mind's Eye". "Meltdown" saw Vinnie changing direction a bit with a record that's a lot more hard rock than it is metal but it still made quite an impact on this young shredder as there's little doubt that Moore understood the art of song-writing as well as any in his craft i.e. instrumental guitar shred. Time hasn't been as kind to "Meltdown" as I'd hoped though & I see it as a step down from "Mind's Eye" these days but it's definitely still worth a listen if you're into this sort of thing.

3.5/5

I'm sure the genre is not for all metalheads, but I'm certainly attracted to it, if only as background music. Thanks for the recommendations, as I haven't delved into it as much as I probably should have. Just listening to Old Sorcery now.

Lemme know what you think when/if you feel like you've got a good amount of them down.

Kensuke Ushio - "Ping Pong" The Animation Soundtrack (2014) 2 x CD bonus disc edition

Over two hours of music taken from a Japanese animated television show. It spans a huge wealth of electronic subgenres including techno, trance, progressive house, drum 'n' bass, IDM, downtempo, ambient, etc. There are a few really great tracks included, particularly the techno & ambient material which is most closely aligned to my taste however there's simply far too much filler here & I find the cheesy trance & quirky IDM stuff to be pretty hard going.

If any of you are thinking of bands that started as gothic death-doom but slowly (d)evolved into alt-prog rock, here are a couple of them; Anathema and The Gathering. While both of these bands disappoint heavier fans by not having their darker metal sound anymore, you know who might like their lighter rock sound? MY MOM!! Seriously, my mom's never really a fan of metal, but she's OK with softer rock sounds.

Unlike Daniel, I stopped really enjoying Anathema's work quite some time ago. I've always had time for The Gathering though, at least I did while Anneke was still part of the band. I think I listen to their non-metal albums more than the metal ones, simply because they can be played while the family is around.