Now this is how it started: THE ILX 1980s ALBUM POLL RESULTS!!

biggest omissions of stuff i'd heard already: the fall - this nation's saving grace, the cure - disintegration

artist most likely to break into my list now: prince, OMD

un-nominated albums that i'd have voted the shit out of: the the - infected, julian cope - fried, the fall - bend sinister, and my #1 choice cardiacs - on land and in the sea

My corny indie ballot. Order seems a bit odd and there are a few omissions (some after deliberate agonising, some because apparently I didn't even see them when doing my ballot in a last-minute rush), but nothing here I'd particularly cut off, so:

1. Units - Digital Stimulation (lol ;_;)
2. Kraftwerk - Computer World
3. Swell Maps - In "Jane from Occupied Europe"
4. Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark - Dazzle Ships
5. Linton Kwesi Johnson - Bass Culture
6. Pixies - Surfer Rosa
7. The Smiths - The World Won't Listen
8. Cardiacs - A Little Man and a House and the Whole World Window
9. Manuel Göttsching - E2-E4
10. ESG - Come Away with ESG
11. Voivod - Dimension Hatröss
12. The Fall - Hex Enduction Hour
13. Keith Hudson - Playing It Cool & Playing It Right
14. Laurie Spiegel - The Expanding Universe
15. This Heat - Deceit
16. Throwing Muses - House Tornado
17. Various - Techno! The New Dance Sound of Detroit
18. XTC - English Settlement
19. Hüsker Dü - Zen Arcade
20. Voivod - Nothingface
21. Sonic Youth - Daydream Nation
22. Brian Eno / David Byrne - My Life in the Bush of Ghosts
23. Devo - Freedom of Choice
24. Pylon - Gyrate
25. Laurie Anderson - Big Science
26. John Foxx - Metamatic
27. American Music Club - California
28. Lizzy Mercier Descloux - Mambo Nassau
29. Galaxie 500 - Today
30. Linton Kwesi Johnson - Making History

9 placed (bold), 3 bands with other records placed (italics), 4 umlauts (that's the real measure of a ballot, right?).

Yeah I would have thrown Fried an 11-20 spot.

fried may well have broken the top 100, why the fuck didn't i bother nominating

LJ did your parents influence any of your 80s selections?

Tuomas, if you could put the .csv on Google docs so we can make our own charts, graphs, and data slices, that would probably save you a lot of requests.

talk talk, duran duran, the cure, xtc, the the, laurie anderson, tom waits: all staples of my younger listening, courtesy of my dad regularly playing them in the car (less so the the, but my dad owned the albums and i listened to them in my own time upon reading of the band)

maybe i was brainwashed, maybe those are the sorts of songs i'm fated to like :(

13/30

1. American Music Club- California
2. Replacements- Let It Be
3. Bruce Springsteen- Nebraska
4. Public Enemy- It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back
5. Leonard Cohen- I'm Your Man
6. Minutemen- Double Nickels on the Dime
7. Sonic Youth- Sister
8. Replacements- Pleased to Meet Me
9. Tom Waits- Swordfishtrombones
10. Beastie Boys- Paul's Boutique
11. Randy Travis- Storms of Life
12. Dinosaur Jr.- Bug
13. Steve Earle- Guitar Town
14. Lou Reed- The Blue Mask
15. Elvis Costello and the Attractions - Imperial Bedroom
16. Merle Haggard- Big City
17. John Cale- Music For a New Society
18. Husker Du- New Day Rising
19. Bruce Springsteen- The River
20. They Might Be Giants- Lincoln
21. Neil Young- Freedom
22. Sonic Youth- Daydream Nation
23. Lucinda Williams- s/t
24. Eric B. & Rakim- Follow the Leader
25. R.E.M.- Reckoning
26. Def Leppard- Pyromania
27. Daniel Johnston - Hi, How Are You?
28. Mission of Burma - Mission of Burma (Rykodisc compilation)
29. The Smiths - Louder Than Bombs
30. Kate Bush- Hounds of Love

so scanning through that list of albums, my only complaint is no Depeche Mode or Siouxsie & the Banshees; other than that this list almost perfectly encapsulates my 80s experience

Tuomas I mustn't forget to say a BIG thanks. This poll was actually a ton of fun.

My ballot:

1. Kate Bush - The Dreaming
2. Japan - Gentlemen Take Polaroids
3. Coil - Horse Rotorvator
4. XTC - The Big Express
5. The Chameleons - Strange Times
6. Peter Gabriel - 3
7. Pet Shop Boys - Please
8. Sonic Youth - EVOL
9. King Crimson - Discipline
10. Janet Jackson - Control
11. This Heat - Deceit
12. Tears for Fears - The Hurting
13. Siouxsie and the Banshees - Juju
14. Prince - Dirty Mind
15. The Police - Synchronicity
16. Depeche Mode - Black Celebration
17. The Pretenders - Learning to Crawl
18. Prince and the Revolution - Purple Rain
19. My Bloody Valentine - Isn't Anything
20. Devo - Oh, No! It's Devo
21. The English Beat - I Just Can't Stop It
22. Grace Jones - Nightclubbing
23. Prince - 1999
24. XTC - Black Sea
25. Fela Kuti - Original Sufferhead
26. The Smiths - The World Won't Listen
27. Slapp Happy - Acnalbasac Noom
28. Sade - Stronger Than Pride
29.The Human League - Dare!
30. Michael Jackson - Thriller

Kinda surprised the Police didn't place.

oh yeah, PROPS TO TUOMAS!

since everyone else is doing this

1. David Bowie - Scary Monsters (83)
2. Kraftwerk - Computer World (8)
3. Talking Heads - Remain in Light (1)
4. Prince and the Revolution - Purple Rain (3)
5. Sam Cooke - Live at the Harlem Square Club 1963
Sonic Youth - Daydream Nation
Prince - 1999
ESG - Come Away with ESG
The Fall - This Nation's Saving Grace
Kate Bush - Hounds of Love
Prince - Sign ‘O’ the Times
Joy Division - Substance
Talk Talk - Spirit of Eden
AC/DC - Back in Black
Sonny Sharrock - Guitar
Meat Puppets - Meat Puppets II
The Mekons - Fear and Whiskey
New Order - Brotherhood
Rush - Moving Pictures
Glenn Branca - The Ascension
Colourbox - s/t
Michael Jackson - Thriller
De La Soul - 3 Feet High and Rising
Sparks - Angst in My Pants
New Order - Substance
The Feelies - Crazy Rhythms
Fugazi - 13 Songs
Bauhaus - In the Flat Field
Tones on Tail - Pop
Pixies - Doolittle

5. Sam Cooke - Live at the Harlem Square Club 1963

an '80s album???

Man, Back in Black had to be close.

my boring, canonical ballot. only 6 didn't place. BORING.

1. Arthur Russell - World of Echo (61)
2. R.E.M. - Murmur (6)
3. Michael Jackson - Thriller (9)
4. Prince and the Revolution - Purple Rain (3)
5. Talking Heads - Remain in Light (1)
6. Bruce Springsteen - Nebraska (53)
7. Young Marble Giants - Colossal Youth (29)
8. Talk Talk - Spirit of Eden (14)
9. ESG - Come Away with ESG
10. The Cure - Disintegration (24)
11. Sonic Youth - Daydream Nation (7)
12. Public Enemy - It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back (2)
13. The Fall - Hex Enduction Hour (36)
14. Kate Bush - Hounds of Love (4)
15. Lizzy Mercier Descloux - Mambo Nassau
16. N.W.A - Straight Outta Compton
17. The Human League - Dare! (23)
18. R.E.M. - Lifes Rich Pageant (56)
19. Cyndi Lauper - She's so Unusual (75)
20. The Cure - Pornography (41)
21. This Heat - Deceit
22. Bauhaus - In the Flat Field
23. Pylon - Gyrate
24. Bruce Springsteen - Born in the USA (54)
25. Brian Eno / David Byrne - My Life in the Bush of Ghosts (52)
26. Eric B. & Rakim - Paid In Full (60)
27. Talking Heads - The Name of This Band Is Talking Heads
28. Nine Inch Nails - Pretty Hate Machine (84)
29. Guns N' Roses - Appetite for Destruction (27)
30. King Sunny Ade and His African Beats - Juju Music

well, 8 didn't place if you actually know how to count.

If I had known Remain in Light had a chance to come in first, I would not have voted for it.

we should all redo our ballots now that we know how this came out, then send to Tuomas for reclaculation, and then have a thread for the CORRECTED ILX 1980s ALBUM POLL RESULTS!!

5. Sam Cooke - Live at the Harlem Square Club 1963

an '80s album???

― mascara and ties (Abbott)

Hell yeah! Not a lick from this surfaced until 1985. IMO the best live album ever. My favorite album that year.

It seems several people included this, so maybe it will sneak into the top 150.

I made this list but forgot to email it:

Steve Reich - Tehillim
Rush - Moving Pictures
Voivod - Nothingface
Sonny Sharrock – Guitar
Pat Metheny & Ornette Coleman - Song X
Bernard Parmegiani - La Création du monde
Fred Frith / René Lussier - Nous Autres
Manuel Göttsching - E2-E4
John Zorn - Naked City
Joy Division - Closer
Sonic Youth - EVOL
Thinking Plague - In This Life
Sonic Youth - Sister
The Smiths - Louder Than Bombs
R.E.M. - Murmur
Nirvana - Bleach
Public Enemy - It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back
The Smiths - The Queen is Dead
Peter Gabriel - 3
Fred Frith - Gravity
Redd Kross - Neurotica
Voivod - Dimension Hatröss
De La Soul - 3 Feet High and Rising
Slayer - Reign in Blood
Prince and the Revolution - Purple Rain
Meredith Monk - Dolmen Music
Metallica - Master of Puppets
Peter Gabriel - 4 / Security
Crass - Penis Envy
Kate Bush - The Dreaming

I wonder if Rush, Voivod, or Sonny Sharrock might have placed.

I don't know why I neglected the Beastie Boys. Paul's Boutique is probably better than those Smiths albums.

I made this list but forgot to email it

So I "threw away" a couple of my votes on things you nominated and then you didn't even vote for them? (Oh well, I'm always a Nader voter, no matter what I'm voting in.)

Sorry!:(

My entry. I think I did it in a hurry and overgothed. If I had the chance to do it again I'd probably change half of these.

1. The Jesus and Mary Chain - Psychocandy
2. The Cure - Pornography
3. Scraping Foetus off the Wheel - Hole
4. Big Black - Atomizer
5. Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds - Your Funeral...My Trial
6. The Stone Roses - s/t
7. Siouxsie and the Banshees - A Kiss in the Dreamhouse
8. Bauhaus - In the Flat Field
9. The Jesus and Mary Chain - Darklands
10. The Cure - Faith
11. The Sisters of Mercy - First and Last and Always
12. Big Black - Songs About Fucking
13. Soft Cell - Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret
14. Siouxsie and the Banshees - Juju
15. The Pogues - Rum, Sodomy & the Lash
16. Cocteau Twins - Treasure
17. The Sisters of Mercy - Floodland
18. Bauhaus - Burning from the Inside
19. The Cramps - Songs the Lord Taught Us
20. Soft Cell - The Art of Falling Apart
21. Kate Bush - Hounds of Love
22. Dead Can Dance - The Serpent's Egg
23. Tones on Tail - Pop
24. Boredoms - Soul Discharge
25. Love and Rockets - Seventh Dream of Teenage Heaven
26. This Mortal Coil - It'll End in Tears
27. Public Enemy - It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back
28. Loop - Fade Out
29. The Teardrop Explodes - Kilimanjaro
30. Xmal Deutschland - Tocsin

My ballot:

1. Slapp Happy - Acnalbasac Noom
2. Joy Division - Closer
3. Dexy’s Midnight Runners - Searching for the Young Soul Rebels
4. This Heat - Deceit
5. Nirvana - Bleach
6. Galaxie 500 - On Fire
7. Public Enemy - It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back
8. Laurie Anderson - Big Science
9. My Bloody Valentine - Isn't Anything
10. Daniel Johnston - Hi, How Are You?
11. De La Soul - 3 Feet High and Rising
12. The Fall - Hex Enduction Hour
13. The Chills - Kaleidoscope World
14. Young Marble Giants - Colossal Youth
15. The Go-Betweens - Tallulah
16. The Vaselines - Dum-Dum
17. Brian Eno / David Byrne - My Life in the Bush of Ghosts
18. Devo - Freedom of Choice
19. The Pastels - Up for a Bit with the Pastels
20. Scott Walker - Climate of Hunter
21. Opal - Happy Nightmare Baby
22. Television Personalities - And Don't the Kids Just Love It
23. Arvo Pärt - Tabula Rasa (ECM 1984)
24. Chris & Cosey - Heartbeat
25. Talking Heads - Stop Making Sense
26. Sonic Youth - Sister
27. N.W.A - Straight Outta Compton
29. Tom Waits - Swordfishtrombones
29. Arthur Russell - World of Echo
30. Meredith Monk - Dolmen Music

I'm glad to see that o.nate also voted for Slapp Happy, and I think if even only one other person had voted for it then it might have made the cut, as we both had it so high. DAMN YOU, ILX. Also, I'm really not sure why I put Happy Nightmare Baby above so many other good records - it's not that great.

abanana, nice to see another vote for Guitar.

sweet another person who voted for heartbeat!

If I had 35 spots, Heartbeat might have made my ballot too.

xxxpost Abbott voted for Acnalbasac Noom too.

And yay someone else who voted for Climate Of Hunter!

Did she? Goddamn, a) she is awesome, and b) we must have missed it by so little.

Here's my ballot. The order is some weird combination of strategery and actual affection.

1. The Fall - Hex Enduction Hour
2. Leonard Cohen - I'm Your Man
3. Scott Walker - Climate of Hunter
4. The Chills - Kaleidoscope World
5. The Verlaines - Hallelujah All the Way Home
6. Sonic Youth – Sister
7. Arvo Pärt - Tabula Rasa (ECM 1984)
8. The Fall - Grotesque (After the Gramme)
9. Public Enemy - It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back
10. The Smiths - The Queen is Dead
11. Prince and the Revolution - Purple Rain
12. The Fall - Perverted by Language
13. Nirvana – Bleach
14. The Chills - Brave Words
15. Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark - Architecture & Morality
16. The Smiths - Louder Than Bombs
17. ABC - The Lexicon of Love
18. Beastie Boys - Paul's Boutique
19. The Verlaines – Juvenilia
20. Sonic Youth - Daydream Nation
21. INXS - Listen Like Thieves
22. Minor Threat - Complete Discography (1988 compilation)
23. The Smiths - Meat Is Murder
24. Beastie Boys - Licensed to Ill
25. Kate Bush - Hounds of Love
26. Young Marble Giants - Colossal Youth
27. Talk Talk - Spirit of Eden
28. Talking Heads - The Name of This Band Is Talking Heads
29. XTC - English Settlement
30. The Smiths - Strangeways, Here We Come

my 9 that didn't make it:

04. The CURE - Standing On The Beach
13. The CURE - The Head On The Door
18. Indigo Girls - S/T
20. The Psychedelic Furs - Talk, Talk, Talk
24. Fugazi - 13 Songs
25. They Might Be Giants - Lincoln
26. U2 - War
27. Galaxie 500 - On Fire
28. Nirvana - Bleach

on fire is #74!

fyi bohemian cat disapproves of these ballots

http://g-ecx.images-amazon.com/images/G/01/ciu/71/64/a99b793509a0266608727110.L.jpg

email.y thx! The only reason I didn't rate it higher is I felt it was kind of cheating as I think Acnalbasac Noom is rly a '70s album, like it only made it in the '80s on a technicality.

ha I mean emil.y

oh man we voted for difft Devo albums...I wonder what it wld have take for the Spudboys to spot.

Also it looks like Police votes were split 3 ways... maybe that's what happened to Blue Nile as well between Hats and Rooftops...

Abbott, yeah, I had that problem initially with Acnalbasac, but after it was nommed I listened to it so much in order to judge whether I thought I could vote for it as an '80s album rather than a '70s one that I ended up loving it so much more than Casablanca Moon, and just generally becoming obsessed by it - there was no other placing aside from #1 that I could give it, really.

The Devo was a tough one for me, as neither eligible album was as good as their other stuff. So in the end it was a bit of a haphazard choice. But they had to be in there somewhere.

(Also, haha, the singer in my band constantly refers to me as 'emaily', so I kinda like it now.)

This was amazing, gripping reading. I didn't vote, but thanks, Tuomas!

This was a mixture of strategic, and very un-strategic, voting. I really wanted Laurie Spiegel to place (and with all the talk about her recently on ILM, I thought there was a chance others would try to force the issue), but her album is certainly not my absolute favorite of the 80s.

1. Laurie Spiegel - The Expanding Universe
2. Willie Rosario - The Salsa Machine
3. Héctor Lavoe - Strikes Back
4. Sonora Ponceña - New Heights
5. Eddie Palmieri - s/t

6. X - Wild Gift
7. Prince – Purple Rain
8. Kate Bush - The Dreaming
9. Jon Hassell / Brian Eno - Fourth World, Vol.1: Possible Musics
10. X - Los Angeles

11. The Durutti Column - The Return of the Durutti Column
12. Fred Frith - Gravity
13. Steve Reich - Tehillim
14. Kate Bush - Hounds of Love
15. Meredith Monk - Dolmen Music

16. Kraftwerk - Computer World
17. Public Enemy - It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back
18. Siouxsie and the Banshees - Once Upon a Time: The Singles
19. X - Under the Big Black Sun
20. XTC - English Settlement

21. Michael Jackson - Thriller
22. Talking Heads - Remain in Light
23. Bob Marley & the Wailers - Uprising
24. The Psychedelic Furs - Talk Talk Talk
25. The Smiths - Meat Is Murder

26. Cyndi Lauper - She's So Unusual
27. Linton Kwesi Johnson - Making History
28. Trouble Funk – Drop the Bomb
29. Prince - 1999
30. Diamanda Galás - The Litanies of Satan

(Preceded by some very un-strategic nominating.)

i didn't even know this was goin on until too late

Dude, you gotta get in there.

Still surprised 90125 wasn't at least in the lower part of the poll.

I really should have voted for this. I can't exactly defend this record but I'd rather listen to it than certain records I did vote for.