Last year, when Oasis announced their return, needless to say I was beyond excited. I have tickets to see them and it’s going to be epically amazing! Since the news came out, I’ve been delving pretty deep into their catalog and it’s really been quite fun. Everyone knows the singles but, Oasis’s deep cuts are truly remarkable. So much so that I’d dare say they are better than the known songs. With all that in mind, let’s see where these albums rank now from not the best to their best!
One of the more positive things about the last couple years, especially during the height of the pandemic, was that during that time, I went on some really great catalog deep dives. There were quite a few bands I did this with and the end result was rather positive. One of the bands that I went down the rabbit hole with was Garbage. I still remember going to the store to buy their first album when it came out as well as the second one. Both of those albums were in constant rotation back in the day for me. Now after going through all their albums and then some, I have come up with a pretty solid ranking of their albums. If you’ve never delved into the Garbage catalog, I strongly suggest you do. They have some absolutely great albums and songs. Plus, their evolution throughout the years has made their music intriguing and reinvigorating to the genre.
07) Bleed Like Me: This one gets the bottom not because it’s a bad album by any means, it’s just that it’s a very front loaded album that when you get to the halfway point, a lot of the songs fall into familiar territory. The album feels like it’s trying to recapture a feeling or time but in the end it just falls a bit flat.
06) Beautiful Garbage: This album is a bit of a departure for the band only in that it doesn’t embrace a particular sound or style. Instead it’s a more experimental album, that finds the band looking to expand upon their sound. At times there are songs that are more “pop” than alternative, and other times you will find songs that are more aligned with an R&B style. This album for me is one of those that has to be listened to under the right circumstances. Put it this way, if you were really into the first 2 albums, this one leaves you a little bit more on the side of “it’s not bad but, it’s not what you thought it would or could be.”
05) Not Your Kind Of People: This album was the bands first in about 7 years after Bleed Like Me. This album is a sort of return to form for the band with some new modern production elements added. It’s a very solid album though it drags a bit as there could have been a couple songs cut off. As a comeback album, this is quite good and worth a good listen. I wouldn’t be shocked that if I did an album rank revisited on Garbage in a year or so, this one could move up a notch or two.
04) No Gods No Masters: Their most recent album is an absolute blast of a listen. It explores a lot of ground without being a nostalgic trip. The lyrical content on this album is quite thought provoking as well. You could even say that this is a very mature album both in the thematic sense as well as musically. After 7 albums together, they know what works best and doesn’t and it shows on this album very well. I really enjoyed this album and keep finding new things to like with each listen.
03) Strange Little Birds: The first time I heard this album all the way through, I felt like this was a sort of sequel or logical follow up to the band’s first 2 albums. There’s a really cool element of mixing the old with the new on this album. Strange Little Birds is a rather deep album lyrically and compelling. The album has some really catchy moments just like the first 2 have. There’s also an anger to this album that you can hear musically as well that really compliments every component well. Each time I listen to this album especially the final song “Amends,” I feel compelled to start it again.
02) Garbage: The debut and the one that started it all. What a superb debut album. It’s got all the great things that made music in the 90’s such a game changer. I love this album and think it’s one of the quintessential debut albums of all time. There is no doubt about the quality of the album from the songs, production, and performances. I also believe that this album became a blueprint for a lot of other bands/artists that have come out since.
01) Version 2.0: The band’s second album and my personal favorite gets the top spot. This one adds to their superb start and goes even further into what they are capable of. The darker elements, especially the lyrical content is quite a trip. Musically, there is so much to discover on this album as the band pulled inspiration from bands from the 60’s, 70’s and 80’s. One of the things I love most about the album is the production on it. There’s a really cool Hi-Fi meets Lo-Fi compliment to the way the instruments sound as well as the vocals. This is one of those second albums, that (like myself) you might enjoy more than the first one. That’s not to say the first one isn’t the tops, it’s all a matter of preference.
Since last week, I’ve been on a pretty intense Machine Head kick. They released 3 new songs recently and it got me wanting to go back through their catalog. The 3 song single that just came out is one hell of a mini set of songs. While going through the bands discography, I made a ranking and think it’s pretty spot on. For almost 30 years now, Machine Head have been one of the best heavy bands out there. They’ve made 2 of the best metal albums ever (Burn My Eyes and The Blackening) and have helped to inspire and influence countless bands you enjoy today!
The other day I had a song in my head but, it was mainly the beat. After agonizing over where it came from, it finally dawned on me that it was a Beastie Boys song, “Root Down” to be exact. Naturally after that, I went on a binge of nothing but the Beastie Boys. And when I tend to do things like that, an album rank pops in my head. So, with that in mind, here’s the album rank of the Beastie Boys releases. Keep in mind that this is actually a really hard group to rank, and I’m not quite sure I got it right.
I went to bed last night with Motley Crue’s song “Live Wire” stuck in my head. Whenever something like that tends to happen, I feel compelled to follow it up with some sort of article for Audioeclectica. So, with that in mind, I thought what better thing to do than to rank all of Motley Crue’s albums from not their best to THE best.
Since I heard Liam Gallagher’s solo album As You Were, I’ve been on a kick of listening to all things Liam and Oasis. While listening to all these albums I’ve really come to realize how truly great Oasis was. I did have the pleasure of seeing them live back in 2007 before they announced their break up. It was a great show with a really good set list. Needless to say I’ve put together an album ranking of Oasis’s albums from not their best to the absolute best.
I was going through my CD collection the other day and realized how many albums A.F.I. had. So naturally, I went on a listening binge of the ones I’ve always dug. Thus we are now at the point where I have made a ranking of all their albums (I’m not including EP’s or live albums) from worst to best. Let me know what your order would be.
Recently Marilyn Manson released a new album entitled Heaven Upside Down. I took a listen to it a few times and while it’s decent, it’s definitely not his best work nor is it The Pale Emperor part 2. This got me thinking that I should do an album rank. So, check out the ranking of not the best to the best.
Over the years, Converge has established themselves as an influential and underrated band. Musically, they are powerful and enigmatic. Vocally and lyrically they are passionate and ferocious. The entire package of the band is approached with a “take no prisoners” type of attitude and it shows in every album they’ve released. Converge are also one of the few bands that seem to get better and better as time goes on just like a fine wine. Recently, Converge released two new songs to wet the appetite of their fans and those two songs are full of what you’d want from Converge. So, with all that in mind here is a ranking of their albums from not their best to the best.
Neurosis is one of my all time favorite bands. They are legends and their influence stretches across many genres. They are also one of those bands that has always stuck to their guns and made the albums that they wanted to, without compromising their artistic integrity. Since their inception, Neurosis have released 11 full length studio albums, all of which deserve your attention. Here are their albums ranked from not the best to the best.
Over the years, Converge has established themselves as an influential and underrated band. Musically, they are powerful and enigmatic. Vocally and lyrically they are passionate and ferocious. The entire package of the band is approached with a “take no prisoners” type of attitude and it shows in every album they’ve released. Converge are also one of the few bands that seem to get better and better as time goes on just like a fine wine. Recently, Converge released two new songs to wet the appetite of their fans and those two songs are full of what you’d want from Converge. So, with all that in mind here is a ranking of their albums from not their best to the best.
