Bjork’s 1997 album Homogenic was nominated for a grammy for Best Alternative Rock Performance, losing to Radiohead’s OK Computer. I guess if you have to lose to another album, that’s high on the list of ones to lose to. Homogenic certified gold in the US and Canada and Platinum in Europe, which are pretty solid numbers for such an eclectic-sounding artist.
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For June 2021, Sonic Collective member Alain Dupuis has chosen to review Sublime’s 1996 self titled album, their first major label debut. Does this album hold up? Can ska, punk, and reggae all collide into an album that we enjoy? Listen along with us, and stay tuned for our review.
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This month we’ll focus on ZZ Top’s third album Tres Hombres, which was released in 1973. While not very warmly received upon its release, as time has passed, it’s regularly recognized as the band’s finest album. It was their first album to enter the Top 10 and single La Grange reached number 41 on the Billboard Hot 100. Get ready to soak in the blues, rock, and dive fully into the original early roots of what has made ZZ Top one of the world’s greatest and longest standing rock bands.
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For April 2021, The Sonic Collective member Darren Scott has chosen the Sleaford Mods, Divide and Exit album. This new and edgy working class electronic punk music is minimalist, raw as hell and has a distinctly new sound. With our world is so much chaos, we need more voices like this, telling it like it is. Enjoy Jason Williamson and Andrew Fearn as the Sleaford Mods.
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The Sonic Collective has decided to pick a round of influential country music artists. Member Scott Gregory explains why he chose the Lady Antebellum: Need You Now album. Listen to this selection and then join us back on April 1, 2021 to hear our review of this classic Lady Antebellum album.
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The Sonic Collective has decided to pick a round of influential country music artists. Member Scott Coates explains why he chose Willie Nelson’s Shotgun Willie album. Listen to this selection and then join us back on February 1, 2021 to hear our review of this classic Willie Nelson album.
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The Sonic Collective has decided to pick a round of influential country music artists. Member Scott Coates explains why he chose Willie Nelson’s Shotgun Willie album. Listen to this selection and then join us back on February 1, 2021 to hear our review of this classic Willie Nelson album.
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The Sonic Collective has decided to pick a round of influential country music artists. Member Darren Scott explains why he chose Dolly Parton’s Jolene album. As we look to explore the most influential albums, a person cannot ignore that the title track Jolene, and another little song that did ok for her and Whitney Houston, I will Always Love You, have to be two of the most influential songs in our lifetime.
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Hi all you people out there in Collective land. It’s me, Scott G, here to present our pick for November 2020, which is also the last of the double album round. As you know, Alain picked our last band, Frankie Goes to Hollywood. This was right up my alley because I’ve spent a lot of time with 80s and 90s Brit synth and pop.
I was really torn on what to pick for this round. Looking through a bunch of top-10 lists there were a lot of great options. I was leaning heavily towards Bruce Springsteen’s The River, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd…lots of solid, safe picks.
But stretching out into top 50 lists, the band M83 caught my eye. First, because the name was unusual, and as far as I could tell I’d never even heard of them before. Their double album’s from 2011 and is called Hurry up, we’re dreaming.
Coming off a Brit synth pop from the 80s, I thought it’d be cool to pair it with some more synth from 30 years later and across the channel. Will there be cultural differences we can detect in the album? Will there be an evolution we can trace back? How will it feel coming off an overtly sexually charged album into something more atmospheric?
Their sixth studio album, coming in at a tight 73 minutes, I’m really hoping for a polished and deeply immersive double record. I don’t usually listen to a lot of ambient music, and I hope this is as new and interesting for you all as it will be for me.
So with that, let’s start our journey together with the Sonic Collective’s November, 2020 pick: M83’s 2011 double album, Hurry up, we’re dreaming. See you at the end month.
The River – Bruce Springsteen
Generation Terrorists – Manic Street Preachers
Daydream Nation – Sonic Youth
Welcome to the Pleasuredome is the debut studio album from the British synth-pop band Frankie Goes To Hollywood. Released in October of 1984, Pleasuredome hit #1 in the UK and European charts, eventually reaching triple platinum status in their home country, moving more than 900,000 units. The album found success all over the world as well, reaching the tops of many international charts.
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