A friend has just texted me to tell me that "I Exhale" sounds like "Hit the North".
― djh, Saturday, 5 March 2016 21:52 (eight years ago) link
Whoa that was my impression too, I'm getting serious Fall vibes from this record, Code: Selfish or Marshall Suite
― Brakhage, Sunday, 6 March 2016 00:14 (eight years ago) link
I love it, great record.
― akm, Sunday, 6 March 2016 00:52 (eight years ago) link
They do sound like a totally different band.
(My predictive text responded 'They do sound like' with 'Morrissey', um, no.)
― Mark G, Monday, 7 March 2016 20:58 (eight years ago) link
I have been listening to their back catalogue all day AND i just found out they are playing in NYC next month and my dude and I are gonna go and I am already FLIPPING OUT
― police patrol felt the smell of smoke and found that goat burns (Stevie D(eux)), Monday, 7 March 2016 21:26 (eight years ago) link
they are ILL live
― nomar, Monday, 7 March 2016 21:26 (eight years ago) link
I maintain that the main thing that ruined 2nd Toughest... for me was first encountering the material via blindly going to a concert with a friend's friend; those live versions were much more immediate, impressive and vital than the experience of listening to the album afterward.
― i like to trump and i am crazy (DJP), Monday, 7 March 2016 21:28 (eight years ago) link
my friend and I saw Caribiou a few yrs ago and at one point I remember turning to him and being like "I guess this is the closest I'll ever get to seeing Underworld live" BUT NOT ANYMORE
― police patrol felt the smell of smoke and found that goat burns (Stevie D(eux)), Monday, 7 March 2016 21:31 (eight years ago) link
i think if you approach STITI as a sort of a cold and icy and more removed endeavor then it opens up. karl hyde is obv doing far less ranting shouty preacher rave stuff here, he's pretty quiet and cool w/the exception of pearls girl.
― nomar, Monday, 7 March 2016 21:33 (eight years ago) link
haha it's telling that "Pearls Girl" is the only song on the album that I listen to, given that advice
― i like to trump and i am crazy (DJP), Monday, 7 March 2016 21:33 (eight years ago) link
i've been trying with you for a DECADE on this album iirc
― nomar, Monday, 7 March 2016 21:34 (eight years ago) link
I've said this before, but I love how quiet Second Toughest In The Infants is in terms of its mastering. It really blossoms when it's cranked up.
― // 166,000 W A N K E R S // LOVE (Turrican), Monday, 7 March 2016 21:38 (eight years ago) link
finally an album of "bruce lee"s
― HYPERLINK TO RAP GENIUS (BradNelson), Tuesday, 8 March 2016 06:42 (eight years ago) link
What the world has been waiting for.
― Tim F, Tuesday, 8 March 2016 06:46 (eight years ago) link
i'm kidding but not. anyway i love "motorhome" sooooooo much
― HYPERLINK TO RAP GENIUS (BradNelson), Tuesday, 8 March 2016 06:46 (eight years ago) link
"low burn" and "ova nova" are very og underworld while the rest is verrrryyyy different
― HYPERLINK TO RAP GENIUS (BradNelson), Tuesday, 8 March 2016 06:48 (eight years ago) link
i'm unfortunately super inclined, only after one listen, to call this their best since ______, even as a huge fan of barking. it's been a while since i intentionally listened to a hundred days off, so i'll report back
― HYPERLINK TO RAP GENIUS (BradNelson), Tuesday, 8 March 2016 06:55 (eight years ago) link
I'm still gonna wait for my copy to arrive but looking back I'm leaning towards Oblivion With Bells being their best? I wasn't a fan on first listen, mostly because it didn't have any epics or bangers, but listening to it now I'm kinda floored by it, the level of detail on some of the tracks is insane, and I really think the last 15 minutes is some of the best music they ever put out.
― frogbs, Tuesday, 8 March 2016 13:34 (eight years ago) link
agree re: Oblivion With Bells. That's a great album. I play Faxed Invitation and Best Mamgu Ever a bunch. Peach Tree too, but that was a non-album track.
― brotherlovesdub, Tuesday, 8 March 2016 15:05 (eight years ago) link
for me "JAL to Tokyo", "Food a Ready/Back in the Fears", "Parc", and pretty much the whole Big Sister EP are non-album favorites. that was a pretty awesome period for them. don't get me wrong I thought Barking was plenty great but lately I've really appreciated this group more when they don't try to sound like themselves. which I guess bodes well for this new one.
― frogbs, Tuesday, 8 March 2016 15:25 (eight years ago) link
Yeah, I'd add the Breaking and Entering soundtrack on there as well. I love that album. They were extremely creative between AHDO and Barking.
― brotherlovesdub, Tuesday, 8 March 2016 16:22 (eight years ago) link
the last three tracks on this is one of the best runs of their career
― HYPERLINK TO RAP GENIUS (BradNelson), Tuesday, 8 March 2016 17:15 (eight years ago) link
i also really love oblivion with bells (and the surrounding eps) but there are parts of that record that i lose track of. my favorite underworld record is either second toughest or beaucoup fish depending on the day
― HYPERLINK TO RAP GENIUS (BradNelson), Tuesday, 8 March 2016 17:17 (eight years ago) link
beaucoup fish is pretty underrated in a lot of ways, in some respects its sound is my ideal underworld sound, even though it's not my favorite (it's probably my #2 after STITI)
― nomar, Tuesday, 8 March 2016 17:48 (eight years ago) link
I think their most satisfying albums are Beaucoup Fish, A Hundred Days Off and Barking. However, my single favorite song of theirs is still "Dirty Epic".
― i like to trump and i am crazy (DJP), Tuesday, 8 March 2016 17:51 (eight years ago) link
It had never occurred to me that Beaucoup Fish was particularly underrated especially within the context of other Underworld albums. TBH it's the only one (other than Everything Everything) that I ever want to play in its entirety.
― Matt DC, Tuesday, 8 March 2016 17:52 (eight years ago) link
i guess think it's only underrated compared to the first two, i don't think it's ever regarded as being on par with them but i think it is.
― nomar, Tuesday, 8 March 2016 17:54 (eight years ago) link
btw NPR is offering "Ova Nova" up as a streamable song and it's kind of incredible
http://www.npr.org/2016/03/07/468737177/songs-we-love-underworld-ova-nova
Between this and "I Exhale", I feel like they've finally hit upon an iteration of the "Bruce Lee"/"Ring Road" template that works extremely well for me rather than making me want to die.
― i like to trump and i am crazy (DJP), Tuesday, 8 March 2016 17:58 (eight years ago) link
i want more sola sistim/jumbo kinda shit from them
― nomar, Tuesday, 8 March 2016 18:02 (eight years ago) link
hard to promise that there's anything like "jumbo" on here but there are many gorgeous moments, among them "ova nova"
― HYPERLINK TO RAP GENIUS (BradNelson), Tuesday, 8 March 2016 18:14 (eight years ago) link
i'm also revisiting i'm a big sister today and what a gorgeous collection of music
― HYPERLINK TO RAP GENIUS (BradNelson), Tuesday, 8 March 2016 18:27 (eight years ago) link
I used to fall asleep to the second half of that almost every day. It's really really good.
― frogbs, Tuesday, 8 March 2016 19:18 (eight years ago) link
the new one is their shortest record so it feels weird for me to say i like it more than a hundred days off, which sort of takes its time doing everything at once, or oblivion with bells, which is maybe their most interior record and, of all their albums, the one i keep discovering new things in.
but i do :D
― HYPERLINK TO RAP GENIUS (BradNelson), Thursday, 10 March 2016 20:44 (eight years ago) link
barbara also feels more like underworld than barking did, which imo barking very deliberately doesn't feel like underworld and is instead a kind of experiment in maximalism that is perfectly suited for spring/early summer weather so i've been jamming it a ton
― HYPERLINK TO RAP GENIUS (BradNelson), Thursday, 10 March 2016 20:48 (eight years ago) link
Barking was full of bullshit collaborators. It wasn't really an Underworld album.
― brotherlovesdub, Thursday, 10 March 2016 20:49 (eight years ago) link
it's still really great imo
― HYPERLINK TO RAP GENIUS (BradNelson), Thursday, 10 March 2016 20:50 (eight years ago) link
also "between stars" is evidence they should compose with darren price more often
― HYPERLINK TO RAP GENIUS (BradNelson), Thursday, 10 March 2016 20:51 (eight years ago) link
^^^^^^^^
― i like to trump and i am crazy (DJP), Thursday, 10 March 2016 20:52 (eight years ago) link
+1 for Darren Price
― brotherlovesdub, Thursday, 10 March 2016 22:19 (eight years ago) link
Its a great album, but boy does it seem short. Like an old-fashioned LP. Needs another side.
― Mark G, Sunday, 13 March 2016 11:32 (eight years ago) link
I didn't play '100 days off' that much, I guess I could dig that one out..
― Mark G, Sunday, 13 March 2016 11:34 (eight years ago) link
Then you'll probably remember why you didn't play it that much
― groovypanda, Monday, 14 March 2016 11:43 (eight years ago) link
Oh and album is officially streaming over at The Grauniad:
http://www.theguardian.com/music/2016/mar/14/underworld-barbara-barbara-we-face-a-shining-future-exclusive-album-stream?CMP=share_btn_tw
― groovypanda, Monday, 14 March 2016 11:45 (eight years ago) link
hey at the very least my last relisten revealed that "luetin" is one of their best songs and is totally buried on that record!
― HYPERLINK TO RAP GENIUS (BradNelson), Monday, 14 March 2016 18:20 (eight years ago) link
^^^^ I have been saying this for years
― i like to trump and i am crazy (DJP), Monday, 14 March 2016 18:21 (eight years ago) link
ok, that can go on side three, what else?
― Mark G, Monday, 14 March 2016 18:30 (eight years ago) link
IMO "No Move", "Two Months Off", "Twist", Dinosaur Adventure 3D"
― i like to trump and i am crazy (DJP), Monday, 14 March 2016 18:31 (eight years ago) link
btw I'm listening to the stream now and I think I'm going to really dig this whole album
― i like to trump and i am crazy (DJP), Monday, 14 March 2016 18:33 (eight years ago) link
righto, that's a side three wrap, ta very.
― Mark G, Monday, 14 March 2016 18:37 (eight years ago) link
really psyched bc the first time i heard the record i was like "oh djp might be super into this"
― HYPERLINK TO RAP GENIUS (BradNelson), Monday, 14 March 2016 18:38 (eight years ago) link
Can't get into this on the whole, but Motorhome is lovely, and a bit... Beatlesy?
― chap, Wednesday, 31 May 2017 12:34 (six years ago) link
I don't know about Beatlesy, but I really love how that track develops.
― The Anti-Climax Blues Band (Turrican), Monday, 5 June 2017 18:45 (six years ago) link
So, the NYT has an interview up with a dude named Jad Abumrad. I'd never heard of him before, but apparently he's a big deal in US media circles because of something called 'Radiolab'.The following exchange caught on my attention:
What were you listening to when you started at Oberlin? Bad techno. My musical taste goes high and low. I was into, like, Underworld’s “Rez.” It’s like the best techno song ever made, still. It’s horrible music, but legitimately an amazing song.
Can anyone parse this strange statement for me?
― Vast Halo, Friday, 30 June 2017 18:46 (six years ago) link
Musical self-loathing snobbery?
― Ned Raggett, Friday, 30 June 2017 19:04 (six years ago) link
where can I pillory this man
― mh, Friday, 30 June 2017 20:14 (six years ago) link
was under the impression from earlier in this thread that they were doing more straightforward sets these days but they're doing a facebook livestream right now from amsterdam and it feels basically as improvisational as everything everything—already heard radically different versions of "between stars" and "bruce lee" feeding into each other
― ToddBonzalez (BradNelson), Friday, 20 October 2017 19:12 (six years ago) link
maybe not this thread actually, but one of them
― ToddBonzalez (BradNelson), Friday, 20 October 2017 19:14 (six years ago) link
Watch here:
https://www.facebook.com/underworldlive/videos/10155046373457849/?hc_ref=ARTuScL5mUjkKV5upwnP2P_4ZibcCyBufZ_Z964XehV_THM2Yq-fU2FuT_47HZbquHk
― groovypanda, Friday, 20 October 2017 19:24 (six years ago) link
(They have basically done straightforward track pause track pause track sets for quite a few years tho. Would be great if they go back to the improv continuous mix days)
― groovypanda, Friday, 20 October 2017 19:27 (six years ago) link
I would be delighted to know that Underworld are a great live act again! Someone on the Underworld forum said they were recording the set, hope it ends up somewhere accessible.
― You're all losing so many points on your progress bars (Champiness), Friday, 20 October 2017 19:28 (six years ago) link
so far this show has been extremely continuous
― ToddBonzalez (BradNelson), Friday, 20 October 2017 19:34 (six years ago) link
I wonder if they've ever played a set where they haven't done Rez/Cowgirl?
Still sounds amazing mind
― groovypanda, Friday, 20 October 2017 19:38 (six years ago) link
Ok. This is fantastic
― groovypanda, Friday, 20 October 2017 19:45 (six years ago) link
wish i were there
― ToddBonzalez (BradNelson), Friday, 20 October 2017 19:46 (six years ago) link
oh well i'll settle for a desk rave
― ToddBonzalez (BradNelson), Friday, 20 October 2017 19:50 (six years ago) link
I think the recent ones are relatively continuous but don't vary much? As in, they have a little leeway, but two sets of equal length will have the same songs in the same order, with the mix being about the same
― mh, Friday, 20 October 2017 20:07 (six years ago) link
ah yeah that's prob what's happening here
whatever this song they're currently playing is is wonderful
― ToddBonzalez (BradNelson), Friday, 20 October 2017 20:11 (six years ago) link
I should be listening to that stream but instead I'm cherrypicking my favorites across the albums and grinning like a madman
― Marcus Hiles Remains Steadfast About Planting Trees.jpg (DJP), Friday, 20 October 2017 20:12 (six years ago) link
oh it was "air towel"!!!! wow
― ToddBonzalez (BradNelson), Friday, 20 October 2017 20:13 (six years ago) link
the live arrangement of "low burn" is improbably beautiful
― ToddBonzalez (BradNelson), Friday, 20 October 2017 20:21 (six years ago) link
stream died in the midst of "king of snake," rip
― ToddBonzalez (BradNelson), Friday, 20 October 2017 20:34 (six years ago) link
sssssssnaaaake
― mh, Friday, 20 October 2017 20:40 (six years ago) link
more like "sssssssnaaa-"
― Marcus Hiles Remains Steadfast About Planting Trees.jpg (DJP), Friday, 20 October 2017 20:43 (six years ago) link
twenty four hours
― mh, Friday, 20 October 2017 20:58 (six years ago) link
A recording of the Amsterdam show can now be found at your favourite file sharing sites
― groovypanda, Thursday, 9 November 2017 10:47 (six years ago) link
it has been on mixcloud all this time btw - and they've given us King Of Snake without the cut too: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xvMqR4X3TQI
― StanM, Thursday, 9 November 2017 12:36 (six years ago) link
I just wanted to share that my sons were running around the house last night shouting "LUNA LUNA LUNA LUNA/I LOVE THIS" completely unprompted
― the Hannah Montana of the Korean War (DJP), Thursday, 9 November 2017 13:55 (six years ago) link
I think I can call it a day on this parenting thing, clearly I've succeeded.
― the Hannah Montana of the Korean War (DJP), Thursday, 9 November 2017 13:56 (six years ago) link
wow, this is absolutely killer - haven't heard them do this sort of improv in a long long time
the fact that these guys only have two official live albums (counting the impossible-to-get Tokyo '05 set) is criminal
― frogbs, Thursday, 9 November 2017 14:59 (six years ago) link
i’ve spent an unreasonable amount of time searching for a working torrent of tokyo ‘05
― ToddBonzalez (BradNelson), Thursday, 9 November 2017 15:05 (six years ago) link
if you're on slsk I can zip it to ya
― frogbs, Thursday, 9 November 2017 15:06 (six years ago) link
Great work, DJP.
Nice to see them back to mixing things up more in live sets. I was at the Tokyo show in '05 - catching the Amsterdam stream was like a flashback.
I listened to Barbara Barbara again the other day. I can't fathom how they remain this great. This is my favourite work of theirs since the Riverrun EP's (I liked everything in between as well, including side projects)
BRAVO
― maffew12, Thursday, 9 November 2017 15:10 (six years ago) link
It's very easy to find on soulseek
20+ people sharing right now
― groovypanda, Thursday, 9 November 2017 15:22 (six years ago) link
(duh - that link I found is only for premium users, isn't it? sorry) :(
― StanM, Thursday, 9 November 2017 15:27 (six years ago) link
http://thequietus.com/articles/24344-underworld-brilliant-yes-that-would-beNice 'n moody - Fenneszy guitars in the last part
― willem, Tuesday, 10 April 2018 08:56 (six years ago) link