Desert Island Music Draft Thread *** draft is over ***

[GoGoGadget]

Not that I in any way wish to deprive you of the Gimme Gimmes or am/was any threat to take them (they were amusing though when your pick sent me over to ITunes to check them out -- basically a fun college cover band), but doesn't that violate the rule against cover albums? Or were some of those originals? Or was/am I misremembering the rule?

I think that cover albums were okay in the case of one artist doing a bunch of covers, but not in the case of several artists doing a tribute album.

 

[Bricklayer]

I think that cover albums were okay in the case of one artist doing a bunch of covers, but not in the case of several artists doing a tribute album.

OKay, I was just rereading the rules myself and did not see anything specifically on point, so maybe it was just me misremembering.

 

[Warhawk]

OKay, I was just rereading the rules myself and did not see anything specifically on point, so maybe it was just me misremembering.

If the covers are from a variety of sources, it's OK. If all the cover originals were from one band/source (say, Elvis), then it is a tribute album and not allowed, IIRC.

 

[bozzwell]

Stone Roses - Stone Roses (1989)

From wikipedia:

"The Stone Roses is the debut album by English indie rock band The Stone Roses, released on March 13, 1989 (1989-03-13). [1] The album is consistently rated highly in "best ever" album lists,[2][3] often tops charts of the best British albums. It established the band as the most important band in their genre for the time."

The Stone Roses were not exactly one-and-done band, but this album is really everything you need to know about this band. You may not recognize band name and remember songs off the top of your head, but you heard their music 1000's of times - if you have TV or watched british movies in last 20 years. If we cross-over to Movie draft thread for a moment - Lock Stock... (GGG's pick) prominently features "Fool's Gold" song, which resulted in the album's re-release and renewed popularity all over again. That must be some sort of record, right? The band releases debut, goes on to become hugely popular, doesn't do much else for ten year, re-releases the same album and becomes huge again?

Hugely influential, perhaps british version of Pixies (i.e. Indy band that breaks mainstream barriers and makes it possible for 100's of other indy bands to do the same), this would be my top 10 band - if they recorded more. As it is they still made one of my top 40-50 best records ever.

 

[pdxKingsFan]

basically a college cover band made good

It probably helps that they're all in "real" bands on the same label (Lagwagon, No Use for a Name, NOFX + a Foo Fighter).

There was much debate on the covers issue, initially this would have been disallowed, but I'm sure there were a few other peeps besides me that managed to persuade Slim. Hey, they've got 6 full length albums out, so its certainly beyond the "joke" stage. I don't even listen to any of their real bands except when they come on XM.

 

[Dime Dropper]

My pick ;

Coldplay - X&Y (2005)
Well, Coldplay are more popular here than I thought. I need at least one of their albums with me, and this is a pretty good one to get this late. Has some nice tracks on it such as "Fix You", "Speed of Sound" and "The Hardest Part".

 

[atxrocker]

probably not in any danger, but a personal favorite of mine that needs to come with me

Third Eye blind- Third Eye Blind 1997

I know I should probably be picking some of my other rock albums that may get snatched here, but this album is making the trip with me. It includes several hit songs like Jumper, Semi Charmed Life, How's It Going To Be and my favorite track off the album, Motorcycle Driveby. This album has gone platinum over 6 times. It's one of those albums that even though I liked it and was aware of it when it came out, it actually has lots of recent personal memories for me and has been upgraded from being a really liked album to a favorite. I know this was probably safe until the last rounds, but i've been wrong before. I like every track on this CD so I don't have a problem with taking it over some others. I was honestly going to leave this album off, but for the integrity of this draft I added it because I knew I honestly didn't want to be a lifetime without it.

 

[Monty'sBiggestFan]

Good lord, I've become hopelessly undecided as I realize how close to the end of this draft and how far away from the end of my list I get. I had an artist I was going to go with, I have three albums I can take but can't chose one damnit. So I'm going with a couple of others I feel more solid about while I ponder the remaining group a little more.

Human's Lib – Howard Jones (1984)

I had two choices here for the Brit with they spikey two-toned hair who ushered in my foray to Technopop of the 80s. His debut or his sophomore follow up. I chose the debut because of its rawness and because it contains another on my list of life-influencing songs. No mass choirs for HoJo, but moving lryics. In "What Is Love?" the opening bass notes always grip me…Howard attempts to assure someone that he does indeed love them despite their doubts. Maybe it’s my philosophical side, maybe because I can be love-cynical but this question and strength of his assurance always stuck with me:

"Can anybody love and want so much that they will never fear?
Never worry?
Never be sad?
The answer is they cannot love this much, nobody can.
This is why I don't mind you doubting..."

Good stuff...

The album thematically had at its core the notion that individual liberation – the freedom to be one’s self- is fundamentally important. The rest of the album and those that followed were just as lyrically strong, and I haven’t even touched his keyboard work, which reached a pinnacle one Grammy night when he, another keyboarding Brit I like Thomas Dolby and the legendary Herbie Hancock and Stevie Wonder all shared the stage together behind a wall of keyboards and let loose. He also ushered in my feeling of being old..he was one of the first artists I went to see perform at a casino. But I was in a room full of people my age tho and we sung our lungs out to every song, so being old didn't hurt as much any more. I need my HoJo.

 

[Monty'sBiggestFan]

Round 14

For my next pick...I'm going with another long time favorite

Introducing the Hardline According to Terence Trent D'Arby - Terence Trent D'Arby - 1987

This was a FANTASTIC album..I think this was another whim purchase when I bought it back in the day, and it still is something I reach back to from time to time when I need a little something. This guy had a great voice and very nice range of of music here, I do remember the comparisons to Sam Cooke when this came out - I can sorta still see it or at least him being plucked from Cooke's era and dropped into the late 80s. The closing track a cover of the Miracles' "Who's Loving You" definitely solidifies that feeling. D'Arby's range on the album was great as well - the danceable "Dance Little Sister" to "Wishing Well" to "If You All Get To Heaven" But seriously, "Sign Your Name" is the star of the album and something I consider a little stroke of timeless brilliance as I continue to hear it get airplay from time to time. D'Arby represents the "quiet storm" or "neo-soul" section of my music island collection in the event he's the extent that I go with in my indecisiveness over my remaining draft picks...

 

[C Diddy]

probably not in any danger, but a personal favorite of mine that needs to come with me



Third Eye blind- Third Eye Blind 1997

Nice pick!

I had this on my list as a late round alternate. Very good album. Motorcycle Driveby and God of Wine are particularly good.

 

[Mr. S£im Citrus]

And, as we enter the fourteenth round, Prophetess continues to lead the league in artists I've never heard of.

I don't know whether it makes any of you feel better or worse, but the only list where I've at least heard of all the artists is atxrocker; everybody else has at least one artist I've never heard of before this draft... and even with atxrocker's list, I've only actually listened to three of the albums on his draft board.

 

[Prophetess]

it's just because you and I have different tastes in music Slim. There's probably at least 10 bands all together that I haven't heard of either.

atx - you're holding up the line!

 

[tradepeja]

how about confession time?

What albums have you bought, sampled, or *ahem* acquired because of them being picked in this draft.

For me its:

The Clash - London Calling
Sublime - 40 Oz. to Freedom
Nirvana - Unplugged in NY (amazing)
Tesla - Five Man Acoustical Jam
Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor

btw slim, was my last pick a band you haven't heard of? because you called them the Kaiser Chefs when in fact they are the Kaiser Chiefs. I don't think they cook.

 

[D-Mass]

atx timed out about 5 hours ago and dime dropper is about to time out in the babe draft thread (he's after atx in here)...what happens in that situation?

 

[Prophetess]

dime dropper is up here and has 24hrs until his time is up. and then it moves onto the next. i imagine its the same for the other thread.

 

[atxrocker]

sorry for the delay everyone

Soundgarden- Superunknown 1994

I did some moving around as I as gonna originally pick up my first female artist here but decided to grab this one instead. I am a big Chris Cornell fan and since I can't bring any of his Audioslave or solo works with me, i'm bringing my favorite Soundgarden album. Filled with several hits like Black Hole Sun, Spoonman, The day I tried to live and Fell on black days it was definitely thier breakout album. I dig alot of their earier stuff too, but this album is great all the way through. It won 2 grammys and makes Rollin Stones list of greatest albums.

 

[Kingzrool]

everybody else has at least one artist I've never heard of before this draft

This actually suprises me. Our tastes are clearly not too far off. Obviousy, it would be BDP, Sean Paul or Spearhead. You are not too much younger than me so I am going to assume that you could not have missed BDP. Sean Paul has acheived some commercial recognition, so I am thinking that you have probably heard of him. I am surprised if you have not heard of Spearhead or Michael Franti. It makes the most sense since a lot of his ideas go against what I might assume is your belief set as a Navy Man. With no political discussion allowed here, I am unaware of your views. Set all that aside and I still think that you should check him out. He credits Gill Scott Herring as a major influence. Check him at http://www.stayhuman.org/, this guy is the real thing. He has a new album coming out this year.

 

[tradepeja]

I am a big Chris Cornell fan and since I can't bring any of his Audioslave or solo works with me

Wait, what? Why?

 

[Mr. S£im Citrus]

This actually suprises me. Our tastes are clearly not too far off. Obviousy, it would be BDP, Sean Paul or Spearhead. You are not too much younger than me so I am going to assume that you could not have missed BDP. Sean Paul has acheived some commercial recognition, so I am thinking that you have probably heard of him. I am surprised if you have not heard of Spearhead or Michael Franti. It makes the most sense since a lot of his ideas go against what I might assume is your belief set as a Navy Man. With no political discussion allowed here, I am unaware of your views. Set all that aside and I still think that you should check him out. He credits Gill Scott Herring as a major influence. Check him at http://www.stayhuman.org/, this guy is the real thing. He has a new album coming out this year.

Uhh... it would be accurate to say that I don't consider myself a humanist.

 

[Dime Dropper]

My pick ;

Arctic Monkeys - Whatever People Say I am, That's What I'm Not (2006)
Most of you probably never even heard of this group. The Arctic Monkeys are fairly popular over here and this is a good album. Indie Rock isn't my favourite genre but this has a lot of good tracks on it.

 

[Mr. S£im Citrus]

Dare I ask?

I dare: where the hell is "here?"

 

[bozzwell]

The Strokes - Is This It (2001)

Amid all the neo-punk, fake-punk and Emo garbage of the current decade here is one band that I genuinely liked. Depending on who you talk to they're garage rock band or punk-pop band. Whatever, they may not be the most original band ever, but then who is with 40+ years of rock history to draw on and be influenced by? I like em either way and Is This It is one of my favorite albums of last 10 years.

From wikipedia:

"Is This It is the debut album by the American alternative rock band The Strokes, released in 2001. The Strokes were the first band to break into the mainstream as part of the turn-of-the-millennium garage rock trend. After signing with RCA, the band went on the opposite way of recording adopted by traditional rock bands. Instead of doing their full-length debut in a professional studio, the Strokes instead opted to record in a basement on Manhattan's Lower East Side, to which they put the name Transporter Raum Studio.
Hyped by the music press for their melodic pop-influenced garage rock sound on both sides of the Atlantic, The Strokes' auspicious debut garnered them critical and popular attention, as well as a backlash from listeners turned off by the hype. Nonetheless, Is This It's more famous songs "The Modern Age", "Last Nite", "Hard to Explain" and "Someday" won the band much respect and helped the album reach number two in the UK and number thirty-three in the US."

 

[tradepeja]

Continuing my current favs, I go with my favorite current hard rock group. I wonder if anyone else has this band on their lists...or the lead singer's main group? I guess we'll find out.

Stone Sour - Come What(ever) May - 2006

The first 8 tracks on this album are all potential rock hits. And most of them were. "30/30-150" "Sillyworld" "Through Glass" and "Made of Scars" were all pretty huge rock radio hits in 2006 and 2007. Other favorites off this album are the title track and "Hell and Consequences" along with probably my favorite song released in the latter half of this decade, the closing track "Zzyzx Rd." Honestly one of the few great songs that I think rock enthusiasts might consider classic in the decades to come. If you aren't going to listen to this album, at least listen to "Zzyzx Rd." on last.fm or something. It made me a believer that good rock can still be made even in to the 21st century.

I can't pick the special edition can I? I wish I could, it includes an excellent cover of "Wicked Game" done acoustically, along with some other good tracks.

 

[VF21]

Dare I ask?

I dare: where the hell is "here?"

dime dropper is from Scotland, hence the occasional time lapses.

 

[pdxKingsFan]

Hoping this one won't pass the Slim test
The Rezillos - Can't Stand the Rezillos (1978)

The AMG review for this album states:

...the Rezillos, however, were that rare band who beat the odds, becoming quite simply the finest fake Ramones the world has ever known.

Which I find quite interesting as it pertains to introducing this pick as well as the fact that I most likely won't be taking a Ramones album with me to my island. They do have plenty of parrallels - the name, obviously, both the Ramones and the Rezillos were on Sire records and both worked in a number of 60s pop recordings into their respective repertoires as well as injecting a quirky sense of humor into their tunes. The Rezillos were a little poppier, and their sound a little more varied. They had male and female lead vocalists which expanded their range a bit, and their songs were a lot more bass driven than the Ramones buzzsaw guitar attack. So they can't be written off solely as fake Ramones.

This album is loaded with fun from the opening original Flying Saucer Attack to the ending Bad Guy Reaction, the album is sprinkled with well chosen covers - The Dave Clark 5's "Glad All Over" and "I Like It" and a little number called "Somebody's Gonna Get Their Head Kicked in Tonight" which amazingly enough originated with Fleetwood Mac! - and quirky themed original tunes such as (My Baby) Does Good Sculptures. There really isn't a bad song on this album and as a bonus if you were to run out and buy it today you'd also get a second live album tacked on to the end (including great covers of Ballroom Blitz and Land of 1000 Dances) plus a single A/B side that weren't on the original album. But even without those I'll be listening to this a ton on my island.

 

[atxrocker]

Most of you probably never even heard of this group.

i own this CD, it's very good. pretty big arctic monkeys fan. good pick. and both the strokes/stonesour picks were nice too.

 

[C Diddy]

Going for two in a row on the Slim obscurity test...


The Starting Line - Say It Like You Mean It - 2002

I like me some pop-punk now and again, and this album is perfect to fill that void. Catchy, upbeat, and meaningful, many of the tracks on this album get heavy rotation in my playlists.

I recommend "Best of Me", "Left Coast Envy", "Up and Go", and "The Drama Summer".

 

[Prophetess]

WARP 11 - Suck my Spock.

Warp 11 is a rock band from Sacramento, California that performs original songs with lyrics mostly about Star Trek. Warp 11 music covers a range of styles including alternative, classic rock, punk, country and blues. Their lyrics are humorous and sometimes profane. Warp 11 was interviewed in the Paramount Pictures documentary Trekkies 2. The Warp 11 song "Everything I Do, I Do With William Shatner" was included in the television broadcast of the Comedy Central Roast of William Shatner.

I found I couldn't take Ditching Shemp (another local band, now defunct) so I'm taking Warp 11. The bassist is also a kick a** DM.

 

[Warhawk]

I'd like to know if ANYONE has heard of this album before:

Young American Primitive - Young American Primitive (1993)

I have a cousin that lived in SF for a while and picked this up through a friend of a friend situation (the CD is from a local SF label, ZoëMagik). This is the only album they (he) put out. And it is a shame no more were made. It is excellent early 90's trance techno, and I love it. And to tie into the previous CD just taken, it uses samples from some sci-fi films, but not excessively.

I like the entire CD, but in particular "Trance Formation", "Young American Primitive", and "Monolith Part II" are very good. If you like trance music at all, give this a shot if you can find it.

Finding it would be the hard part, though....

From allmusic:

Young American Primitive is a self-titled debut album of a magical, techno-funk band. The music is at once bristling but never out of control. The effect of the energy that is underlying each piece is to provide an impetus of variety and power rhythms that make the music danceable. Young American Primitive is poised to be the American spokesman for the current wave of Euro-techno-funk.

 

[C Diddy]

I'd like to know if ANYONE has heard of this album before:

Young American Primitive - Young American Primitive (1993)



Finding it would be the hard part, though....

I haven't heard of this one before, but I'm sure the only place you'd be able to find it is Amoeba in S.F. There's about 500+ artists just like this there. Its not really my taste, but I know that's the best place to find this kinda stuff.