I'd go with Goldfrapp. Even their weaker albums (Head First, Silver Eye) are still 8/10.
― kitchen person, Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:04 (four years ago) link
you say autechre i say boards of canada.
― walking towards the sun since 2007 (alex in mainhattan), Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:04 (four years ago) link
xxp yea the only one of them I think is less than great is Draft which for whatever reason is still somewhat impenetrable to me, outside of 6IE.CR & V-PROC
― frogbs, Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:08 (four years ago) link
The Smiths must be a contender for this trophy. There is hardly a crap song in their catalogue and so many jewels. There is def. more consistency than in The Beatles discography. The Smiths did not make an Ob-la-di-ob-la-da.
― walking towards the sun since 2007 (alex in mainhattan), Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:09 (four years ago) link
early Autechre has not aged well imo
― The Mandymoorian (Whiney G. Weingarten), Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:10 (four years ago) link
CodeineBark PsychosisTalk Talk
― ymo sumac (NickB), Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:10 (four years ago) link
Roxy Music
― ymo sumac (NickB), Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:12 (four years ago) link
Yeah, Talk Talk and Roxy Music are both to be considered.
― walking towards the sun since 2007 (alex in mainhattan), Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:13 (four years ago) link
― The Mandymoorian (Whiney G. Weingarten), Tuesday, January 28, 2020 3:10 PM (three minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink
how early we talking? incunabula is their weakest record but "bike" still goes. after that everything is golden
― american bradass (BradNelson), Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:14 (four years ago) link
early Ae still sounds pretty good to me, I think the two that sound the most dated are Tri Rep (too crunchy & dry) and LP5, which is a bit over-the-top in that late 90's Aphex way that wasn't really followed up on. but I still think they've held up better than any other 90s IDM records outside of maybe Music Has the Rights to Children
― frogbs, Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:15 (four years ago) link
i've been listening to trip rep a lot lately and idk it still sounds like the future to me
― american bradass (BradNelson), Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:16 (four years ago) link
I agree to a certain extent. Though their debut remains one of my favs from that era. Amber is actually my least favorite Ae album at this stage, but even that has some outright classics like Glitch, Yulquen and Teartear. However, Tri-Rep and Chiastic still hold up for me. Everything afterwards, once they really got into FM synthesis, has a very modern sound to it that absolutely still holds up to my ears.
Their 90's peak between 95-98 honestly could use some remastering/remixing. A lot of it sounds somewhat flat by today's standards. Would love to hear how it sounds with some restorative polish. Worked well for Kraftwerk
This is why I love these guys. So many differing opinions on their records...
― octobeard, Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:17 (four years ago) link
Yes, Broadcast, I was trying to make a sampler of their earlier stuff and gave up after realising I couldn't leave off anything from their compilation of early singles/EPs
― mfktz (Camaraderie at Arms Length), Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:19 (four years ago) link
i love the place amber takes me to specifically but i can also understand why someone would think that’s their weakest
take out the early stuff and you still have 2.5 decades of quality, and all of the side eps are events unto themselves
― american bradass (BradNelson), Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:20 (four years ago) link
The fact that there's no consensus bad record from them says a lot.
― octobeard, Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:21 (four years ago) link
Autechre's early stuff is their best, when they were still making techno. It's been downhill ever since.
― Tuomas, Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:21 (four years ago) link
^^^ see they even inspire the wrongest tuomas opinion possible, they win
― american bradass (BradNelson), Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:22 (four years ago) link
Fugazi, Drive By Truckers, Smiths... I can get behind Autechre, Roxy, CCR ...
― Josh in Chicago, Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:22 (four years ago) link
Fela's catalogue is extremely consistent; to a fault, some might say, but there's very few I'd warn people away from
― rob, Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:23 (four years ago) link
A related question is the best band with exactly one album (or, for that matter, exactly one single).
A band that released exactly one undeniably perfect song, and then immediately broke up, could potentially win this category.
― Okay, you're an ambulance (Ye Mad Puffin), Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:23 (four years ago) link
A True White Kid that can Jump (Granny Dainger) at 3:13 28 Jan 20is there a bad Duke Ellington record?there's probably a ton of old jazz artists who never made an out and out bad record
― Blues Guitar Solo Heatmap (Free Download) (upper mississippi sh@kedown), Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:25 (four years ago) link
Uncle Tupelo
― Okay, you're an ambulance (Ye Mad Puffin), Tuesday, January 28, 2020 3:23 PM (one minute ago) bookmarkflaglink
surely M|A|R|R|S gets posted by now every time one of these threads is done
― don't care didn't ask still clappin (sic), Tuesday, January 28, 2020 2:23 PM (one hour ago) bookmarkflaglink
― american bradass (BradNelson), Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:26 (four years ago) link
anyway I think my answer for this has to be Susumu Hirasawa, who from 1979 until now has put out about 30 "main" albums (including P-Model obviously), of which only maybe 2 or 3 are less than "very good". on top of that there's a ton of supplemental material worth checking out, not to mention the soundtrack work. of course there are a lot of artists who are very consistently good but Hirasawa is particularly interesting because like Autechre his music is constantly progressing, going from being part of a scene to something that's essentially peerless, and like Ae you're not really sure where the 'peak' is, you could argue for it being pretty much anywhere
― frogbs, Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:27 (four years ago) link
if one-off all-star records count I would take "All in the Same Gang" over MARRS any day of the week
― Οὖτις, Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:28 (four years ago) link
The Blue Nile have to be worth mentioning (for a change). Holy Love is probably the only weak song they put out.
― kitchen person, Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:28 (four years ago) link
― ymo sumac (NickB)
Slightly let down by Flesh & Blood IMO
― kitchen person, Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:29 (four years ago) link
Is there a thread for "only released one single and nothing else"? There would be some good post-punk and dance acts in that thread.
― mfktz (Camaraderie at Arms Length), Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:30 (four years ago) link
surely M|A|R|R|S gets posted by now every time one of these threads is done― don't care didn't ask still clappin (sic), Tuesday, January 28, 2020 2:23 PM (one hour ago) bookmarkflaglink
Nobody remembers "Anitina (The First Time I See She Dance)"
― mfktz (Camaraderie at Arms Length), Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:31 (four years ago) link
bands that put out only one great album:
the VaselinesAlthea and Donna
― Οὖτις, Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:31 (four years ago) link
see also: The Normal
― The Squalls Of Hate (sleeve), Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:32 (four years ago) link
― Οὖτις
Young Marble Giants
― kitchen person, Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:34 (four years ago) link
Also Sky Ferreira.. there's never going to be a second album is there.
― kitchen person, Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:35 (four years ago) link
M|A|R|R|S are so perfect for this that they split up before recording, and different people did the A and B sides
― don't care didn't ask still clappin (sic), Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:37 (four years ago) link
Incunabula, Anti and Amber sound almost like a different group compared to more abstract sound that came later on. Those early Autechre records had bass lines and pads etc like you would think a techno or idm track to have. Later on, it's WTF is that? pretty much became their sound. To be fair, the last one I got was Confield, but I got most of their early cds including eps.
― earlnash, Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:38 (four years ago) link
xp Best band that never really existed but seem to have released a brilliant single anyway
― mfktz (Camaraderie at Arms Length), Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:39 (four years ago) link
The Smiths did not make an Ob-la-di-ob-la-da.
Girlfriend in a Coma, Golden Lights, Meat Is Murder, Never Had No-One Ever, Work Is a Four Letter Word...all less fun than Ob-La-Di, imo.
― fetter, Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:39 (four years ago) link
The Birthday Party's discography is really solid. Only thing that might be considered missing is a top notch sounding live record.
― earlnash, Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:40 (four years ago) link
Low
― daily growing, Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:40 (four years ago) link
Uh, "Anitina (The First Time I See She Dance)" is amazing.
― Spencer Chow, Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:41 (four years ago) link
Came here to post Roxy Music and see it's been done twice. Yeah, their quality control (and progression between albums) still amazes me.
"you know my name, look up the number" isn't that bad, gtfo with that
It's honestly among my favorite Beatles songs.
― A perfect transcript of a routine post (Dan Peterson), Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:41 (four years ago) link
A band that released exactly one undeniably perfect song, and then immediately broke up, could potentially win this category.― Okay, you're an ambulance (Ye Mad Puffin), Tuesday, January 28, 2020 3:23 PM (one minute ago) bookmarkflaglinksurely M|A|R|R|S gets posted by now every time one of these threads is done― don't care didn't ask still clappin (sic), Tuesday, January 28, 2020 2:23 PM (one hour ago) bookmarkflaglink
― Tuomas, Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:43 (four years ago) link
Ooh, Low ...
― Josh in Chicago, Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:44 (four years ago) link
xp. there is a doug groover track on here https://www.discogs.com/Various-Best-Of-Home-Tapes/release/4752119
― frederik b. godt (jim in vancouver), Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:46 (four years ago) link
Young Marble Giants is a good call since all their non-album stuff is ace
― rob, Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:50 (four years ago) link
Tom Waits never really faltered imo (assuming you can get behind the early stuff, which I very much can)
― bold caucasian eroticism (Simon H.), Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:53 (four years ago) link
Al Green and Pet Shop Boys, obviously. How is this even a question?
― TikTok to the (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:56 (four years ago) link
deffo second pet shop boys and third young marble giants
― nxd, Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:57 (four years ago) link
Bardo Pond
― Charlotte Brontesaurus (Leee), Tuesday, 28 January 2020 22:59 (four years ago) link
Motorpsycho have kicked out something great pretty much every year or two since 1992. only their debut album is 'less than good'.
― frogbs, Tuesday, 28 January 2020 23:10 (four years ago) link
lol definitely not
― out-of-print LaserDisc edition (sleeve), Wednesday, 22 November 2023 15:28 (four months ago) link