Top 50 Most Overrated Electronic Albums

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Of course I take that point but as a non-clubber or singles buyer the albums tend to be what I've heard, apart from the some compilations or single that gets radio play. I'm not dissing the genre, just wondering if my reaction to the albums and more committed fans reaction may be less different than I'd assumed.

frankiemachine, Friday, 4 June 2004 10:17 (nineteen years ago) link

steve's undying devotion to early-mid 90s home electronica is nothing short of heroic

strongo hulkington (dubplatestyle), Friday, 4 June 2004 10:54 (nineteen years ago) link

How in the fucking fuck is BLUE LINES overrated? Don't you LIKE "Safe from Harm"???

Unknown User, Friday, 4 June 2004 11:18 (nineteen years ago) link

are all of you that dumb that you keep confusing the word "overrated" with "dislike" or "bad"?

strongo hulkington (dubplatestyle), Friday, 4 June 2004 11:19 (nineteen years ago) link

(though i do dislike blue lines. quite a bit.)

strongo hulkington (dubplatestyle), Friday, 4 June 2004 11:20 (nineteen years ago) link

it's funny some people seem as embarassed about liking 'Leftism' or 'Exit Planet Dust' now as they do about 'Parklife' or in my case the first Faithless album. but everyone liked these albums at the time! (except the first Faithless album, that was just me)

stevem (blueski), Friday, 4 June 2004 11:23 (nineteen years ago) link

i'm surprised no-one mentioned 70 MINUTES OF MADNESS tho as strongo notes i will defend that too muahaha

stevem (blueski), Friday, 4 June 2004 11:25 (nineteen years ago) link

I still like "leftism" and "parklife" but I have always thought the chem bros BRING TEH SUKC, so ass to "exit planet dust".

jess otm, as well, I mean, I like orbital's albums loads, but they are, or were at least, very over-rated.

Pashmina (Pashmina), Friday, 4 June 2004 11:30 (nineteen years ago) link

jess doesn't like electronica anyway though. its like asking alex frm NYC what jazz is overrated.

mullygrubber (gaz), Friday, 4 June 2004 11:36 (nineteen years ago) link

I read the Spin Alternative Record Guide

Your first mistake, Anthony. I'm with Siegbran.

Chris Ott (Chris Ott), Friday, 4 June 2004 11:51 (nineteen years ago) link

To sum up this thread:

Top 50 Most Overrated Electronic Albums=ALL OF THEM

peepee (peepee), Friday, 4 June 2004 13:59 (nineteen years ago) link

Down With the Scene was overrated by college radio types when I was, well, a college radio type. I actually don't hate it, but people were creaming over it back when it was released!

Clarke B. (Clarke B.), Friday, 4 June 2004 14:43 (nineteen years ago) link

'Endtroducing'

dave q, Friday, 4 June 2004 14:48 (nineteen years ago) link

four tet is overrated

Toon (Skelter), Friday, 4 June 2004 14:54 (nineteen years ago) link

Taking sides:

Talking About Records

vs.

Talking About Your General Impressions Regarding the Underlying Pattern of How Other People Have In the Past Talked About Records

Mark (MarkR), Friday, 4 June 2004 15:02 (nineteen years ago) link

Luomo, VOCAL CITY. IDM guy makes deep house. Big whup.

Jeff Sumner (Jeff Sumner), Friday, 4 June 2004 15:48 (nineteen years ago) link

This is a major XPOST, but since I started this thread, I feel I should reply to a few assertions:

Yeah, in context everything is/can be overrated, but I wanted to see if some people would throw down their choices and back them up. I dropped SAW II because while I thought it was a good album at the time of its release, in time it has evolved even further into this groundbreaking ambient work (on many "top ever" lists), which is untrue. If anything, with time it seems to highlight Aphex Twin's tendency to pepper his audience with masturbatory sketches and lazy efforts.

And I totally disagree with Tim Finney's suggestion that people simply don't remember albums being overrated. I was very much into electronic music in the early days of 808 State (which was the point of reference) and it in fact was fairly rated at the time.

And I would agree that DJ Spooky would own this thread, but the only place he's ever been "overrated" is maybe Newsweek or the like.....

jsoulja (jsoulja), Friday, 4 June 2004 16:33 (nineteen years ago) link

Well, you not fitting into Tim's argument doesn't totally disprove it.

oops (Oops), Friday, 4 June 2004 16:46 (nineteen years ago) link

Let me revise that. Tim's suggestion of people not remembering is certainly applicable, but not w/r/t the 808 State claim.

This again suggests a need for people to back their claims up with something, otherwise, it's all easily dismissible.

jsoulja (jsoulja), Friday, 4 June 2004 16:46 (nineteen years ago) link

its like asking alex frm NYC what jazz is overrated.

Hey! I like some jazz.

Alex in NYC (vassifer), Friday, 4 June 2004 23:44 (nineteen years ago) link

why are some people so afraid of other people dissing the music they are into?

strongo hulkington (dubplatestyle), Friday, 4 June 2004 23:46 (nineteen years ago) link

I'd guess because they interpret it as some form of personal critiscism. Some knobhead on another thread listed a menu of songs he likes more than "Eighties" by Killing Joke (among them the theme from "Gilligan's Island") and I started to get all uppity(surprise) until I realized....who fuckin' cares? His loss. When someone critiscizs something that means so much (maybe too much) to you, it's alsmost as if they're critiscizing a part of you! I don't know.

Alex in NYC (vassifer), Friday, 4 June 2004 23:49 (nineteen years ago) link

what's weird is that even the love thread turned ugly, people posting loud unspecific disgust over what other people enjoy.

(Jon L), Friday, 4 June 2004 23:52 (nineteen years ago) link

well, exactly! I like quite a few of the records I'd put on this list but it doesn't mean I think their fans are overstating the case. I probably overstate the case about things I like as a matter of routine but it's not gonna break my heart if someone else doesn't like it. (except Gold Teeth Thief, that's just wrong.) [insert winky here]

Matos W.K. (M Matos), Friday, 4 June 2004 23:55 (nineteen years ago) link

Well, c'mon, who doesn't love to topple a sacred cow?

Alex in NYC (vassifer), Friday, 4 June 2004 23:56 (nineteen years ago) link

but even there, I'm kinda going, "Yeah, I did overrate GTT, didn't I?" (I didn't, but you get my point.)

Matos W.K. (M Matos), Friday, 4 June 2004 23:58 (nineteen years ago) link

JSoulja you've missed my point - I'm not saying that 808 State were horrendously overrated. Rather, that if we'd had this thread five years ago people would have banged on about 808 State being overrated despite the fact that by that point they were *already* underrated. The same thing happens now for Leftism - which has been attacked as overrated for so long now that it must surely be underrated (which it is, I think - it's not the best dance album ever but it's very enjoyable and fairly consistent).

Tim Finney (Tim Finney), Saturday, 5 June 2004 00:13 (nineteen years ago) link

*tips his hat to Tim Finney*

jsoulja (jsoulja), Saturday, 5 June 2004 04:43 (nineteen years ago) link

Hey! I like some jazz

i know alex AND you like some hiphop. its just if someones commenting from outside a position of enthusiasm/fanaticism for a genre they're always going to be mystified by the love particular records get.

to try and reach an objective position on the relative merits of all musics is a project that bloody difficult.

mullygrubber (gaz), Saturday, 5 June 2004 06:25 (nineteen years ago) link

why are some people so afraid of other people dissing the music they are into?

because being in love is a wonderful feeling?

mullygrubber (gaz), Saturday, 5 June 2004 06:35 (nineteen years ago) link

*actually reads thread*

o ok i'll shut up now.

mullygrubber (gaz), Saturday, 5 June 2004 06:38 (nineteen years ago) link

48) Manitoba - Up In Flames

I still can't understand all the ilm love for this one. Are you all still listening to it?

mei (mei), Sunday, 6 June 2004 11:28 (nineteen years ago) link

Just came across Slant's all time top 25 electronic albums (2002), which was a poll among 300 DJ's/journalists/etc:

1 Trans-Europe Express - Kraftwerk
2 Blue Lines - Massive Attack
3 Selected Ambient Works: 85-92 - Aphex Twin
4 Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld - The Orb
5 Dummy - Portishead
6 Ambient 1: Music For Airports - Brian Eno
7 Endtroducing... - DJ Shadow
8 Exit Planet Dust - The Chemical Brothers
9 Dig Your Own Hole - The Chemical Brothers
10 Homogenic - Bjork
11 Orbital 2 - Orbital
12 Substance - New Order
13 dubnobasswithmyheadman - Underworld
14 Innovator - Derrick May
15 76:14 - Global Communication
16 (Who's Afraid Of?) The Art of Noise - Art of Noise
17 Utd State 90 - 808 State
18 Homework - Daft Punk
19 Leftism - Leftfield
20 Music For The Masses - Depeche Mode
21 Maxinquaye - Tricky
22 Music Has The Right To Children - Boards of Canada
23 Bytes - Black Dog Productions
24 Everything Is Wrong - Moby
25 The White Room - KLF

So apparently to be overrated you must be
- British
- Ambient/IDM

Siegbran (eofor), Sunday, 6 June 2004 12:28 (nineteen years ago) link

...and to be "electronic" you must not be electronic, apparently

49. The Stooges - Fun House
50. Nirvana - Nevermind

well they use electricity to power their amps, so counts!

zebedee (zebedee), Sunday, 6 June 2004 12:31 (nineteen years ago) link

The White Room and Everything Is Wrong seem like the only dubious inclusions there

stevem (blueski), Sunday, 6 June 2004 12:38 (nineteen years ago) link

That list is rediculously anglocentric.

Siegbran (eofor), Sunday, 6 June 2004 13:16 (nineteen years ago) link

thirteen years pass...

revive

the late great, Thursday, 10 May 2018 18:53 (five years ago) link

I feel like you could really go to town on some of the electronic albums of the intervening years - Burial, Darkstar, Forest Swords, Actress, Galcher Lustwerk, Andy Stott, Jam City etc but it's like shooting fish in a barrel at this stage.

Matt DC, Thursday, 10 May 2018 19:15 (five years ago) link

let’s do it

let’s go to town

the late great, Thursday, 10 May 2018 19:17 (five years ago) link

i agree w 6 of those 7 btw

the late great, Thursday, 10 May 2018 19:17 (five years ago) link

galcher lustwerk has an album?

marcos, Thursday, 10 May 2018 19:18 (five years ago) link

i think he has like five at this point if you count the side projects

the late great, Thursday, 10 May 2018 19:18 (five years ago) link

http://galcherlustwerk.bandcamp.com/album/dark-bliss

i was into the first few singles (esp i neva seen and the one w “tape 22” on it) but i’m pretty over it now

the late great, Thursday, 10 May 2018 19:19 (five years ago) link

Arca - literally everything he's recorded that hasn't been with Bjork, and at least half of the Bjork stuff as well

Matt DC, Thursday, 10 May 2018 19:21 (five years ago) link

my feeling about arca has always been a very strong sense of idgi

the late great, Thursday, 10 May 2018 19:24 (five years ago) link

galcher lustwerk is from my hometown so i'll have time for him, though i guess not enough to know he put out an album

the burial debut was interesting but i'm amazing anyone cared after that

i also don't get arca, borderline unlistenable imo

marcos, Thursday, 10 May 2018 19:25 (five years ago) link

Logos - Cold Mission
Mumdance - Twists & Turns

Hell, anything they briefly tried to sell as 'grime' before everyone remembered what it was.

The entire discography of Jon Hopkins, Daniel Avery, most of Caribou etc.

Matt DC, Thursday, 10 May 2018 19:28 (five years ago) link

burial had a hot streak until 2013 when it all started to sound rather samey

the late great, Thursday, 10 May 2018 19:28 (five years ago) link

omg matt i revived this with hopkins and avery in mind!!!

the late great, Thursday, 10 May 2018 19:29 (five years ago) link

CLARK

marcos, Thursday, 10 May 2018 19:32 (five years ago) link


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