Instrumentals!

[Vyn]

I started listening to that Sky song, and thought it sounded...interesting. Not off, or wrong, but something about the recording itself seemed a little different than what my ears were expecting. So played it through a simple EQ that has a little trick up its sleeve - it does a fantastic job representing the waveform, as in it is spot on.

Lo and behold, there is some heavy "smear" mixing across a handful of bands. That 'splains it!

[KiloDeltaCharlie]

^^^
Are you speaking Chinese or is it just my ignorance... I have no idea what you're saying! 

[Vyn]

Some of the notes are extended somehow, like the drums, that should be more "point in time". I'm not sure what the technical term for it is, but in the image the high bump parts of the EQ is where it maxes out, the bottom most line should be just a thin line, like it is in the middle, but the areas under those bumps are wider looking, like certain notes were caused to ring longer.

I just re-read that and am impressed at my ability to use so many words and still not make any sense

[Charger]

My #8 is a bit more mellow of a tune from CATHEDRAL

THE CARAVAN from the album Caravan Beyond Redemption.

This is a very catchy and kind of simple melody but it holds quite a good variety of instrumentation. Sort of in the vain of Planet Caravan but more acoustic guitar driven. Showcases well that Cathedral was more than just an ultra heavy doom band. They had quite a good feel of the mellow stuff too!

It just manages to clock 3 minutes!

[Zzzptm]

I want this in my top 10, but it's not got a YouTube video to go with it, so here's a link to the song on Bandcamp:

The Marlboro Men - "Grogan's Run" https://themarlboromen.bandcamp.com/track/grogans-run

It's got some textures to it, sure, but it's also got some great meat in it. This is the kind of song to play at the end of a concert, where everybody gets a little sump'n to play, got a great riff to it, and then "Thank you, good night, we love you!" as the band takes a quick smoke break before the encore.

[Vyn]

"a quick smoke break" - Marlboro Reds, no doubt.

Another thing. So, my nifty EQ software tricked me. The extension of the notes on those bands isn't real...I had a setting on the software incorrectly set. So, rather than a thin line, it for some reason has random thickness. Anyway, ignore everything I said about it. Fuck.

On to better things! Number 7 comes to us from Pink Floyd's 1971 LP "Meddle": One of These Days. I think the entire Meddle release is seriously under-rated. Here's the tunage (with one incidental spoken line):

[Zzzptm]

IT IS NOT AN INSTRUMENTAL BECAUSE THAT GUY TALKS ON IT I WILL NOW RAGEQUIT

To be sure, that's an incredible mood piece, it's Halloween music for people who *really* want to scare the kids.

[KiloDeltaCharlie]

Pick number 4

Rush - The Main Monkey Business

The first of 2 or maybe 3 Rush instrumentals on my list. This 6 minute effort comes from the 2007 album Snakes and Arrows. An unusual album in that it has 3 instrumentals on it although the other two are too short for this list. I thought the live version was just as good as the studio version and means there is something to look at!

[Charger]

My # 7 comes from Finland...

NIGHTWISH - IMAGINAERUM

This was the title track of the Best album Nightwish has done. It is something of a medley, featuring parts of every song on the album but it also contains "original" stuff. Great orchestration here. This is like a really really big orchestral movie score. Love it.

[Zzzptm]

That Rush tune opened with a riff that reminded me of another one I love, Booker T. & The M.G.'s "Sunny Monday".

[Vyn]

Number 6: Stewed and Keefed (Brian’s Blues) by The Rolling stones. Apparently recorded in June of 1964 and then relegated to the "nah, maybe later" pile, I only recently heard about it. Maybe a year and a half ago. But it stands out to me as a fantastic Stones' artifact celebrating the music that motivated them to play music in the first place.

For that, it makes my list. Otherwise, it isn't particularly compelling or frankly any better than your average dime-a-dozen bar band jerking around for $50 a night and going nowhere.

As I sit here and think about it some more, I imagine the idea that they would be touring the world and playing to tens of thousands of people...SIXTY YEARS in the future...was a thought that couldn't even find the framework to form in their minds.

Yet, that's what it be

[Zzzptm]

Stones had some amazing musicianship for kids their age. They way they were able to play with authenticity speaks to their ability to not only select great influences, but to do more than technically replicate those works. They've got a *feel* that is absent in a lot of lesser bands.

Putting The Beatles up against other bands, matching song for song, The Beatles frequently come off with a big loss. Rarely do they match or exceed the original work. The Rolling Stones at the same time period would be the guys you'd never want as an opening band, they were so consistently good. They were experts at making tunes 100% their own.

[KiloDeltaCharlie]

@Zs
That Booker T tune does have a certain similarity. I'll catch up on the other new tunes later.



Pick number 5

The Damned - Trojans

I had forgotten about this one until earlier. Re-listened to it and decided it was too good not to include on this list (I needed a 10th choice anyway!). It comes from their Phantasmagoria album and it's not very punky!

[Vyn]

"Stones had some amazing musicianship for kids their age."

True dat. However, with that song I posted specifically (and no doubt they heard the same thing I hear now in it) is that only about half the actual Rolling Stones played on that recording.

To your point about their level of craftsmanship: I remember reading something from Keith Richards stating how much he and the others played instruments when they were kids (pre-band) and then once they got together. Like, ALL THE TIME. If they weren't noodling around learning their instrument(s), they were either sleeping or thinking about noodling around learning their instrument(s). Those guys LOVED what they did, and had no problem making excuses in every other facet of their lives in order to have more time to make music. And when it came to making music, they made zero excuses.

I think Brian Jones was musically gifted, more so than the others, but if any of them lacked anything in that regard, they more than filled any gaps with sheer determination.

[Charger]

My #6 comes from the collaboration of Tony Martin and Aldo Giuntini in the form of GIUNTINI PROJECT III (which was a bitch of an album to find but luckily did so few years ago as it is absolutely excellent!)


TUTMOSIS IV / TARANTULA

Tutmosis is a short atmospherical keyboard intro that leads into Tarantula which is a rather furious piece of guitar driven heavy metal. What I've always loved about Aldo is that unlike some other technical guitar players (like Steve Vai, Yngwie and so on) he doesn't do any wankery or fancy smanchy effects, he just plays the shit out of the guitar and this is a prime example of that!

Funny bit of totally irrelevant information, my Grandparents had that painting which the artwork for this album was taken from...well not the original (I assume) but a reproduction...but still, hung on the wall of their living room.