Sep 5, 2015

Five members of SXN80 talk a little about their favorite pop record.
What's your favorite pop record you f---in' pleb?

Beach Boys - Pet Sounds (1966) @MTY


Pet Sounds is one of the greatest albums ever made, period, outside of any artist or genre. From Animal Collective to the Beatles, this album shook the music world forever, with it's dense arrangements composed by bandleader Brian Wilson and personal lyrics also penned by Brian Wilson and collaborator Tony Asher. Wilson and the rest of the Beach Boys give us 13 tracks of amazing vocal harmonies, wonderful instrumentation, and great pop music that can appeal to just about anyone. It's a teenage epic about growing up, finding love, and change. If you want to consider yourself a music fan, this album is a must-listen and essential to the history of modern music.


Michael Jackson - Thriller (1982) @Joshua Smoses


I didn't want to pick Thriller. When you talk about great pop albums you obviously have to include Michael Jackson somewhere, and everyone picks Thriller. I wanted to pick Bad, his follow-up and arguable masterpiece, because it's... just better, right? I mean, there's not a track wasted on Bad, and how many of us honestly still listen to that "doggone girl is mine" song with the guy from Wings? But every so often I'll re-discover songs that I just haven't listened to in years and fall in love with the music all over again. Last week that song was Billie Jean.
I've probably listened to it 30 times in the past week and it's just musical perfection. We all know how great the bassline and the synths are, and the layering of Michael's vocal harmonies is music perfection, but all of the little moments like the guitar coming in during the chorus climax before everything is brought down again are what make the song for me. And moments like that are what Thriller gets exactly right. The synths in the background of Beat It, the vocal effects on P.Y.T., the layered percussion pieces on the title track, it's an album made with an uncanny ear for detail. People like to celebrate Michael Jackson for his videos, or his dance moves, or his vocal ability, but Thriller is the best example of just how great the man's musical ear really was.


Kate Bush - Hounds of Love (1985) @Charlie Strangelove


Still reeling from the commercial failure of her previous major label release, Kate Bush retreated to her family home where she converted the barn into a 48-track studio. Spry and love drunk, she spent the summer with her boyfriend writing and recording on her own time about the eagerness and trepidation that bubbles inside of all 20-somethings. The romance she drew on was sincere and vulnerable. The hopelessness she felt took on the narrative of tredding water. Instead of rerecording the 12 songs in a more sterile setting, her demos served as a raw foundation. From this bedrock blossomed palpitating rhythms, lavender-bathed textures, and cloudbursting vocals. From its Irish Jig to its horror homage, Hounds of Love is a personal experience merely assisted by the pop conglomerate, the Victor Frankenstein to its Igor.


The Smiths - The Queen Is Dead (1986) @Peter Parker


Hailed as one of the most creative records of the 1980's, The Queen Is Dead is often viewed as The Smiths' magnum opus and showcases the impeccable synergy between Morissey and Marr, reliably supported by the rest of the band.
Moz, during the course of 37', approaches a wide range of subjects, from politics to break-ups and from anecdotes about the queen to originality, life and death; amid all this bloody mess, he takes a moment to s---t a parthian arrow to their manager, as Frankly, Mr. Shankly comes to its end. His lyrics capture different moods and express self-pity and despair, phlegmatic satire and wit, and are delivered with breath-taking vocals that cement him as one of the greatest front-men of all time, flowing on the sounds of Marr's guitar, who tries to outshine himself with every riff. His jam towards the end of The Queen Is Dead is pure brilliance.
The Smiths weren't exactly post punk, they didn't really jumpe on the new-wave and they sure as h--- weren't glam metal, so what is this record? It's a monumental trend-setter, and one of the britishest ones at that.


Prince - Lovesexy (1988) @sindy


lovesexy is a pop, rock and funk album about god sex and and good vs evil. on the first track prince opens with the reason why my voice is so cool cause there no smack in my brain..a powerful message much needed in the late 80's. the single alphabet street has rap verse from cat glover:
"talk to me lover and tell me what u taste
didnt your mama tell u life is 2 good 2 waste?
didnt she tell u lovesexy was the glam of them all? if you can hang you can trip on it
you surely wont fall no side effects and the feeling lasts forever, straight up-
it tastes good it makes u feel clever. u kiss your enemies like u know u should
then you jerk your body like a horny pony does"
lovesexy is the feeling when you fall in love or find god. probably the latter in the opening track he says lovesexy is the one til my day is done followed by hundalasiliah! lol. but you can take it as whatever you want to me lovesexy is swag. "you kiss your enemies like you know you should" is to love your haters which is also the theme of i wish u heaven.
prince was making movie soundtracks around this time and it shows on the production on the album most notably anna stesia with its cinematic intro. prince dabbles in diiferent genres. parts of glam slam sound like a van halen song, there is a the slow jam when 2 r in love and lots of funk. great album with awesome production and a positive message.

 

Sep 5, 2015

Good read

 

Sep 5, 2015

bump

and you spelled brian wrong in the tags @Charlie Strangelove you f---in' pleb

 

Sep 5, 2015

That senile f--- couldn't spell it right either.

 

Sep 6, 2015

i would like to point out that the carly rae jepsen album has been out two weeks and has yet to crack 20,000 physical copies

 

Sep 6, 2015

 

Sep 6, 2015

@Stannerisms leave

 

Sep 6, 2015

#brain #wilson #is #my #favorite #beatle

 

Sep 6, 2015

didnt i tell you not to post in this alias?

zep pls

 

Sep 6, 2015

 

Sep 6, 2015

I really like the name/avy combo i dont want it to go towaste, f--- it il switch over

 

Sep 6, 2015

Thanks for filling the thread with trash

 

Sep 6, 2015

But it's not plus member like.

 

Sep 6, 2015

wow dissapointed in zep for having an alias

 

Sep 6, 2015

 

Sep 6, 2015

A couple personal favorites:

 

Sep 6, 2015