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Author: tantan on April 16 2008 Viewed 4086 times. 25 people liked this blog. You can rate it below if you haven't already.
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There have been many fave this, fave that blogs lately. Lets take it further.
Name your (no more than) five absolutely favorite songs of all time. I'm talking songs that are fundamentally, archetypally connected to your soul. Songs that you never, ever tire of hearing. Songs that make you cry, or shake your ass, or piss you off in that righteous sort of way every single time you hear it. Songs that other people can cover and you still feel that tug. Dig deep. There is no shame here.
Finally, to hell with lists. Say something real about these songs and where / how they get you.
Mine.
1. Depeche Mode. Stripped. This song, for me, is the perfect dark techno-pop song. The sounds are clever, the arrangement is very effective, and melodically it is a punch to the gut. Every time that big old string pad kicks in, I am toast. I love this song to death, and I love every cover version of it, including that recent sort of popular cover by Shiny Toy Guns.
2. The Cure. Sinking. There are so many Cure songs milling about in my subconscious, in particular this one, A Forest, and To Wish Impossible Things. However, this is the first of their songs that I heard that tapped into the sort of desperate emotional vibe that they would gratuitously, wonderfully exploit on Disintegration later on. The simple little piano riff kills me.
3. Bjork. All is Full of Love. Specifically, the Funkstorung remix that features in Chris Cunningham's video. A perfect, gorgeous song. The sounds, songwriting, and more than anything, her performance are terribly moving to me.
4. Slowdive. Dagger. So much of Slowdive's canon is huge and dripping the sort of miserable sentiment that I get off on, I'm not sure what it is about this tiny song that hits me. Contrast? Its sparseness in context of their other work? However, it moves me just as much out of context. I just know that it is a very simple little gem of a song, and it works because of it.
5. Skinny Puppy. Worlock. Oh man, that vocoder. Damn.
Hm, with the possible exception of the bjork track, no IDM or contemporary electronic peoples.
Also, due to popular request: please recount your five favorite jerkoffs -- identify the location, duration, and time of day.
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04/16/08
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bla
i honestly cant pick 5 songs
theres loads of stuff i never tire of hearing
04/16/08
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Roshi
Right now it would be:
1. To Here Knows When - MBV
2. 2 (soundtrack for lalala human steps) - MBV
3. Rafflesia - Boris
4. Anything - Plaid
5. Roads - Portishead
Actually, this is really random, but what is really influencing me right now.
04/16/08
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tantan
Roshi -- why do you love these songs?
04/16/08
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Roshi
Right now it would be:
1. To Here Knows When - MBV - This is the song that made me fall in love with MBV. Someone called this track like being "hugged by a swarm of bees"
2. 2 (soundtrack for lalala human steps) - MBV - the germs of the ooray can be heard in this track - it's written as a dance composition for guitar, cello, and piano. Sonic miasma at its finest.
3. Rafflesia - Boris & Michio Kurihara- it soars and sweeps and is massively loud. Saw them play this live.
4. Anything - Plaid - off "Trainer" - one of the very first plaid tracks and is just simple, sweet and perfect.
5. Roads - Portishead - the production on this track just blows me away.
Actually, this is really random, but what is really influencing me right now.
04/16/08
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sAMsKi
i'll give it a go for a laff. in no particular order (and like bla, i could write hundreds of alternative tops 5's...but):
1. Rollins Band : Liar
2. Mr. Bungle : Love is a Fist
3. Robert Johnson : Sweet Home Chicago
4. Jimi Hendrix Experience : Red House (version from UK release of Are You Experienced)
5. Henry Cowell : Concerto For Piano & Orch. I Polyharmony
hahaha - that is so funny...about fifty more lists coming soon............
04/16/08
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tantan
sAMsKi, nice one, total divergence from much of what people listen to around here -- what about these songs get you?
04/16/08
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sAMsKi
oh, crikes - reasons too:
1. Liar is dark, twisted, scary and just cuts to the core. Most of my less sane friends hate hearing it.
2. That album was the first memory I have of my friend Grinner playnig me something i really liked - when i was say 14? The riffs in that tune are great. the album overall is amazing - IMHO.
3. Just a delightful and touching track.
4. Amazing example of electric blues done well. Feeling and expression over widdle and ueber technique. All too rare.
5. A stark and disorienting piece of music form a true pioner.
haha - oh dear.
04/16/08
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tantan
roshi -- I almost named "milh" by Plaid, from Not for Threes. That song is so unabashedly, straightforwardly beautiful, it's what hooked me on Plaid for several years. I love the over the top canonizations and delays they used to deploy.
04/16/08
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Roshi
Haha...here's some more
6.cLOUDDEAD - cLOUDDEAD number 5 - one of the best drone pieces ever
7. Swans - Warm - the centerpiece of "The Great Annihilator", arguably their masterpiece
Also, I love Henry Cowell, samski!
04/16/08
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sAMsKi
agree with that tantan. yum plaid yum...not for threes yum. that's gonna feature on my next list.
04/16/08
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sAMsKi
fucking nora my spelling is wobbly today...maybe because i have lots of work to do and am trying to cram a quick top 5 in my break 
yeah roshi, henry cowell is great in my books. difficult listening at times but something very special. at a tribute concert to cage, broadcast by the BBC in 2003 (i think) a couple of Cowell cluster pieces were performed...for the first time live in the UK. they described how the pianist came out with his arms and hands all strapped up........sounded amazing.
04/16/08
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jdg
not in order of favs. they're all equal to me
• jimi hendrix - band of gypys - machine gun (the guitar solo makes me cry)
• police - spirits in the material world (fucking c'mon.. its brilliant)
• john vanderslice - plymouth rock (bbbbbbbbbest tones ever.. a perfect engineering feat)
• photek - ni ten ichi ryu (sword sounds in a song? perfect)
• janes addiction - mountain song (best album order ever)
04/16/08
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Roshi
Yes, to ni ten ichi ryu!
That song made me give up making drum and bass. I realized that there was no way I could do something that good.
samski - cowell's work is "difficult", but to me it has a real sense of humor to it that is missing from a lot of the late-mid century composers everyone seems to worship.
04/16/08
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license
this is impossible. I would be here all day and I certainly couldn't narrow it down to five.
I'll be checking out everyone ELSE's favorite tracks though. the Bjork and Plaid tracks are definitely in the top 200 for me at least...hehe.
04/16/08
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SenorFrio
Here are mine:
- Heatmiser - Plainclothes Man --- Just good old Portland Style Elliot Smith song writing
- Radiohead - Everything in it's Right Place --- So good live!
- Nirvana - Lithium --- cos is good.
- Public Enemy - Black Steel In the Hour Of Chaos --- Fight the Powah!!!
- The Wee DJs - REquest (Theweedj's "WEE mix") --- This song makes you feel like you're on acid. It's even better when you're on acid. One of the best psychedelic electronic tracks... and I'm talking "eat your face" psychedelic.
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