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Drew Lewis2 said:Oh man, OP—this is news to me. Super cool!

Yeah, they're awesome—they have like a billion albums out! I haven't sat down to listen to their whole discography yet, but honestly, everything I've played sounds great. You can really tell how much they inspired Ariana Grande and her crew. Check it out: Just a little something—nothing much to report today!

wiredmason61 said:Man, my tooth is really killing me after getting it pulled yesterday—definitely wasn't expecting that much ache! 🕺

Japanese TV was nothing like what I saw on Discovery Channel last night—totally different vibe, just Martian Soup vibes. ...

I'm feeling the same way about this—first time I've ever heard it!
Ouch, good luck with that tooth—is it a wisdom tooth? :/

Spent all yesterday afternoon and this morning just vibing to Crystal Castles—I used to blast them constantly back when I was a student at NYU, though I don't get around to listening to them nearly as much these days. But when I finally do? I just throw on those first three albums and crank the volume—it's such a mood! 😍
I honestly don't know how they'd fare on the Album of the Week list—probably wouldn't do too well, if I'm being real—and I'm having such a hard time picking just one. I guess I'd probably go with the second one.

I was just thinking about Knights—it’s such a killer track! It always reminds me of those late nights driving through Chicago with the windows down. // Just feeling a bit intimate today—honestly, it’s such a nice vibe. It reminds me of those quiet Sunday mornings back in Chicago when everything just feels perfectly still. // Vietnam. // Bad Blood div>

Ashley Grant66, this is awesome. Where should I actually start with Crystal Castles and Alice? Like, which albums am I looking at?

I’ve never really listened to them, though I've seen her recommended a bunch of times and somehow always just skipped over it...
I think I saw her mention them in some interviews once, so now I'm kind of curious.

Crystal Castles is definitely best experienced by starting with the first album and powering through to the third 🙂 Nah, personally I found the hype died down pretty fast... it just kind of fizzled out once they stopped splitting up for a bit.

Basically, you can really track their evolution here—just slight shifts in style and themes, though everything gets way darker as they go. They definitely have their standout moments! If I were revisiting them, I’d probably jump straight to the second or third, but you've gotta hear the first one just to see where they started and how far they've come...

Yeah, totally—CC from one to three—they’re basically named after the band itself with those (II) and (III) labels. Honestly, listening to (II) today, it feels like their most complete and polished work to me. The first one is way more experimental and maybe a little "unrefined," but I think it holds a special place in my heart—back when they first broke onto the scene, I just couldn't find anything else to compare them to.
Like, Alice Practice was always seen as this "random" track—just a little studio jam where Alice was messing around—but it quickly turned into a huge fan favorite. Looking back now, though, given her confessions about the abuse she went through from her bandmate starting when she was only 15, the song takes on this incredibly scary, unsettling vibe. 🕺 To me, it’s always felt a bit tragic, almost like a muffled cry for help.

Here are a few other tracks I love 😍
Vanished // Black Panther // Celestica // Violent Dreams

As for Alice's solo stuff, I don't really know what to say—I tried listening to it, but it just didn't click for me. It's a shame, too, because she finally escaped that toxic environment and is doing her own thing as a way to heal. But man, it’s just not hitting the same outside of CC. She’s such a massive part of the band's sound, but CC isn't just her—everything there is so perfectly produced and balanced, whereas her solo projects feel like they're missing that certain spark.
For instance, this and this are just... meh. If you stumble upon anything actually good, let me know!

Based on what I gathered from your first post, I think it might actually work better if I go in reverse—starting with the third one and working back to the first.
But I'm going to listen to all three anyway, thanks. 🙂

Solo tracks are a different beast, sure. I'll check those out too... 😉

wiredmason61 said:I’m still feeling the sting from getting a tooth pulled yesterday. 🕺

My dentist actually popped a filling out of a completely different tooth while he was pulling one—real artist, right? 👍

Hell awaits

Dennis Hall41 said:Ennio

Seriously? That’s Ennio? :S I thought it was just some Fantômas cover version. :rolf:

I'm a multi-Sagittarius myself—Sun, plus five other planets in there. :S

Lisa Davis46 said:mother sky :cerek::cerek:

+

she brings the rain

we can and we may 👋

Dennis Hall41 said:Alright, yeah—it felt like being in a grave.

Speaking of post-math-rock, have you heard these guys?

Giraffes? Giraffes!

op, not bad

Arthur Brown6 said:March 2003, Madison Square Garden. I wasn't there—a combination of circumstances and various subjective reasons. If anyone actually attended and is reading this forum and this thread and this post, leave some impressions. So, for the 17th anniversary:

New York 3 wow

Wow, there are some genuinely unexpectedly good parts here. Some days they were just stuck in a swampy cul-de-sac in whatever current lineup they had going.

wiredmason61 said:Better a grave than a slave. 😛 Jokes aside—I miss the crew from last year. They were the ones helping me track down interesting new artists. Whether it’s due to the pandemic or something else, everything feels smaller lately.
So, here’s a round for Drew Lewis2, Jules, Mark R., and late B...: Pivo:

NP Pete Josef (feat. Marie Lister) - Giants ...

Well, thanks. It's great. 😁 I'm still hanging around, about three pages behind.

Ashley Grant66 said:👍 Tenks, interesting album. You can really feel those elements you mentioned, though I have to admit I don't get the Slint vibe all that much...
Elephant talk honestly sounds like it belongs on Remain in light. 😛
Indiscipline and Thela Hun Ginjeet were wild to me.
It feels like The Mars Volta listened to this a lot. 😁

Cymande

Of course—Adrian Belew, King Crimson's guitarist, played a bit with the Talking Heads (apparently they even asked him to replace Byrne, but he turned them down). That's one of my favorite YouTube clips. Same with "The Great Curve." ^^

And Adrian had some seriously incredible luck. He played with Zapp, Bowie, Talking Heads, King Crimson...
I think even a little bit with Nine Inch Nails, if I recall correctly. 😁

That Cymande track is legendary.

Lawrence Ross4 said:Parcels - Live Vol.1 😎

Man, you hit the mark again. They are so cool.

Steven Newman50 said:Right as I'm saying this, it starts playing: Democratic Party

What a lineup you've put together here🙏—this is easily one of our best albums ever, by the way
Their live sets are fucking killer too

New from a band that’s also something special when they play live

Drew Lewis2 said:another release from a band that’s always been incredible live

😛
it's honestly great

Drew Lewis2 said:Man, what a killer run of releases you guys have put together... 🙏 honestly, this might be one of our best albums ever, just saying
their live shows are absolutely insane too

I was actually just chatting about how recently I’d love to catch them live as soon as they tour 👍

The Democratic Party popped up in my suggestions, and that led me straight to pridjev 👋

Heading off to work now, though I might post something later once I've recovered from the Talking Heads; I've got my headphones on just to give me enough energy to climb the stairs to the top of the world 🙄

Anyway, I have tomorrow off! 🎉

Listening Wind super really gets me going.😁

So, I just started checking out Giraffes—it's actually pretty fun! Perfect for those late afternoons when my workday just keeps dragging on forever.

Speaking of math rock—if you haven't gotten into Battles yet (though I'm sure you have), their whole album is incredible. Honestly, this track might not even be that great if it didn't have that part starting at 6:15... Once, one time, I was amazed 🙂
I love how they build up all that tension after the five-minute mark... it's the best. Even if parts of it sound a bit like Looney Tunes—someone mentioned that below.
I think I first stumbled upon the album while lurking through some old PDF back in 2009, and someone on that legendary "Hate" thread once joked that it sounds like Mickey and Mini Maus multiplying on a tin roof.🤣

Ashley Grant66 said:Listening Wind super really hits for me. 😁

I love this track. 👍

It settles both the mental and physical tension.... 👍

Regarding math rock—if you haven't already (though I assume you have), check out Battles. That entire album is solid, and this specific track wouldn't be nearly as much of a standout without that section at 6:15.... Once, one time, I was amazed 🙂
Generally speaking, that whole build-up of "tension" after the five-minute mark is top tier. Even if parts of it sound a bit like Looney Tunes, someone pointed out how good it is below.
I actually stumbled upon the album while lurking through some old PDF back in 2009. Someone on that legendary "Hate" thread once described them as sounding like Mickey and Mini Maus multiplying on a tin roof. 🤣

Don't know about the album, but I've been a fan of the math wizards Battles for a long time! 😁👍

For example, this track is also famous 🐔 and very good, plus the music video is great.

Battles - Tonto

rising tensions

Ashley Grant66 said:...
Ace, good luck with the tooth. Wisdom tooth? :/
...

hey, tenks. wasn't a wisdom tooth, just a molar. been bugging me for years, honestly won't miss it. 😬

Jason Mendoza said:my dentist actually popped a filling out of another tooth while pulling one. total genius... 👍
...

😲 heyyy 🤣 I ended up doing pretty well with mine! 😁

Drew Lewis2 said:...
well thanks, it's great 😁 hanging around somewhere, about three pages behind...
...

hehehe, nice. I'm swamped with work, promise myself I'll make a playlist to listen to while I grind and then I'll just forget again. check the last link or two and call it a day. in that spirit, Battles should fit perfectly into a workday afternoon. 🙂

np Tom Misch & Yussef Dayes ...

Erykah Badu - Didn't Cha Know

Dove and some fennel tea right before bed... 🙂

The Illuminati

Brian Eno has another daughter!

Arthur Brown6 said:Brian Eno has another daughter!

Fine, thanks. First I’m hearing about her, but looking her up online, this girl seems incredibly intellectual and experimental. She uses AI as an "ensemble member" and all that stuff.

It's too much for me... I'm exhausted... 😁

Back in the day, you could listen to old school 😍 experiments
and actually enjoy them. But this? This is way over my head.
Holly Herndon & Jlin (feat. Spawn) - Godmother (official video)

Spawn is an AI entity😵 😁 (which I think she developed herself😵 )

Look, My Life in the Bush of Ghosts doesn't need an explanation—it’s a pure masterpiece.

That said, about half of Platform Herndonice is surprisingly great; honestly, better than that Godmother stuff.