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You searched for ‘heavy’, which matched 120 songs.
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Yeah Whatever  performed by Splender
Recommended by meatball [profile]

Relatively new. Great song all around. Fluctuates between load and soft, but overall it's pretty lively, but more importantly, not heavy.

from Half way down the sky
available on CD - yes



The Stalker  performed by Green Velvet
Recommended by timbotones [profile]

this is a twisted sort of house/techno number that will appeal to non-lovers of house. Its heavy enough, tweaked enough, etc. and the vocals are nice and twisted. dark, but still humorous "im losing my mind"


available on CD - the nineties


Through the Yard of Blonde Girls  performed by Jeff Buckley
Recommended by two-headed boy [profile]

I'm into blonde women, always have been. Perhaps I share a kindship with the late great Jeff Buckley. I can just imagine where he's coming from, standing on stage, electric guitar amped to rock, all that power in his hands, peering out through the crowd into a yard of blonde girls. How wonderfully empowering! Just think of it? A young man in his prime slashing power chords in front of a legion of women, and leaving this song to remind us of what it's like to live this mythical life. I sing along, dreaming of what it would have been like as a rock star, what kind of pleasure could I derive from the world?

Jeff has certainly proven and disproven his own stylings from the seminal album, Grace, to the somewhat obscure and fragile My Sweetheart the Drunk. What could have been still reverberates through my mind when listening to this song in particular. Its compelling simplicity and catchy chorus, "very sexy, very sexy, okay, okay" beckons my blonde girlfriend to break out into song. The slow thrust of crunching guitars, standard rock 4/4 time, heavy drums sitting on every beat - it's almost glam, almost British invasion, almost cock-rock, but Buckley style. And yes, very sexy, very sexy. Trust me guys, girls will love this song!

from My Sweetheart the Drunk, available on CD




  amyliner: Hi, Just to say that Jeff Buckley didn't write Yard of Blonde Girls (not that you'd ever know from the way he performs it. *sigh*) It was written by A.Clark - L.Kramer - I.Lorre. But yes, girls do love this song. Espencially we blonde ones!!!!
  elision: 'yard of blonde girls' seems to be a somewhat pejorative term (the middle-upper class socialites, the 'gold sharks') so while Jeff Buckley may have stood rock god-like and looked upon legions of blonde girls (somehow I doubt that was his main audience) with a sexually approving eye, if the song spoke anything about his truth, he would probably have been looking out for the different one, the pure one who rises above social politicking in her innocence, the Lola.
  ultra-violent romantic: eloquently said elison; i have to agree with you, especially in reference to the "gold sharks glittering." in david browne's dual biography on tim and jeff buckley titled "dream brother," he points out that when jeff recorded this song he made it very apparent that he didn't want any Sony reps to get a hold of it...
Journey to the East  performed by Bill Plummer and the Cosmic Brotherhood
Recommended by djfreshmoney [profile]

Totally ridiculous faux-Indian song with very "heavy" spoken lyrics on top. A real trip.

from Bill Plummer and the Cosmic Brotherhood




  scrubbles: It *is* a trip. This same album has what might be my favorite instrumental version of "The Look of Love" -- a lovely, subtle arrangement with sitars, woodwinds and a groovy solo from a sitar-like stringed instrument. Way out, man.
THE THREE DAYS OF THE CONDOR  performed by RYTHM HERITAGE
Recommended by DJEDGARMARTINEZ [profile]

RYTHM HERITAGE WERE THE COMPOSERS AND PERFORMERS OF THE THEME FROM "SWATT", THE T.V. SERIES.
HEAVY INSTRUMENTATION SPICED WITH LOTS OF FEELING.
THIS THEME IS AT THE SAME TIME POWERFUL AND EASY GOING.






  konsu: Don't forget the "Baretta's theme", which smokes as well. From the album "Discofied".
Travelling Riverside Blues  performed by Led Zeppelin
Recommended by dwmjuk [profile]

Finest cover of a Delta-blues track by heavy blues band. Pounding and relentless, and retains a semblance of delta-mississippi feel.

Find the original too! The lyrics are very interesting.

from BBC Sessions ONLY


Fire and Water  performed by Free
Recommended by dwmjuk [profile]

The first proto-heavy metal band and a direct link between metal and blues. Heavy driven blues. Free sound extremely sparse compared with similar bands and this is part of their appeal.





Hurt So Bad  performed by Nancy Holloway
Recommended by mr_klenster [profile]

This is a perfect cover in every way, arranged by Daniel Janin. The heavy, driving bass, long whine of the horns, and thick drumming make a monster instrumental. Nothing like the Bacharach version. Nancy Holloway does an outstanding rendition of the lyrics, delicate in some places, husky in others, bleeding and pleading the whole way through. The slow, pained delivery of the lyrics almost seem to be off pace with the tempo of the beat, but the horn melodies punctuate and hold this song together. There are qualities about this song that I find impossible to describe. All that's left to say is that this song is so cool and mesmerizing that it's hard not to close your eyes, and let yourself slip into the textures of this song. I never get tired of it.

from Hello Dolly!



VX Gas Attack  performed by Skinny Puppy
Recommended by absinthe [profile]

This is one of my favorite Skinny Puppy songs and the one that got me to stop listening to metal and start listening to industrial. The synth is not heavy at all, but somehow it made me go "Well, maybe I don't need my music to be heavy." It's a good track to start off with if you're new to Skinny Puppy. Also try The Killing Game if you want to be more familiar with them.

from Vivisect VI


Shoots and Ladders  performed by Korn
Recommended by gypsy36 [profile]

I think this is one of Korn's first songs to get airplay, although most people I know don't remember it. It came out during the Grunge era of the 90's.

This is not a serious, meaningful song, but it is fun! How could you not like to hear your favorite childhood nursery rhymes translated into a hardcore rock song? It's a great idea!

After singing somewhat diabolical versions of "Ring-Around-A-Rosy", "London Bridge Is Falling Down," "Mary Had A Little Lamb," etc...Jonathan Davis leads us into the main chorus:

"Nursery rhymes are said, verses in my head
Into my childhood they're spoonfed
Hidden violence revealed, darkness that seems real
Look at the pages that cause all this evil"

The most interesting thing about this song is that each rhyme has a unique style, kind of like songs within a song; and it all fits together neatly.




Girlz Love Me  performed by Heavy D
Recommended by Kimolimilama [profile]




the glass prison  performed by dream theater
Recommended by forzaf308 [profile]

This song shows how talented every member of Dream Theater is. It's a pretty heavy song musically, and it is put together so well. Anyone who appreciates talented musicians will like this song.




Everything You Want  performed by Vertical Horizon
Recommended by abby [profile]

Sounds a bit like sense field, good song, good lyrics and good riff, for the rockers who don't like it too heavy.




Dirty Harry  performed by Gorillaz
Recommended by sungoddess [profile]

It took me a long, long while to �get� Gorillaz. Oh come on, who didn�t like �Clint Eastwood�? I dunno, having sunshine in a bag is a nice lyric to repeat when people are pissing you and your shit off� yet, �Clint Eastwood� didn�t make me a fan.

No, in fact, no Gorillaz track did more to bring me into the fold than �Dirty Harry�, with its amazing keyboards, bassline and children�s chorale�

It�s just been a while since I�ve come across pop music that was so far off the beaten track, that it redefines what is �mainstream�. This is always fun for music lovers, but once again goes to prove that noone with taste thinks the cookie cutter approach to popular music is the right way.

Well I�m a Gorillaz fan now, maybe three or four years late, but I�m a fan for sure. �Demon Days� has quickly jumped up to �Heavy Rotation� status in my last.fm and musicmobs profiles in a heart beat.

It�s weird, because someone brought a pre-release copy of �Demon Days� for me way back in April, but I listened to it a few times and then ignored it, forgot it for the most part (if you ignore the iconic billboards and posters everywhere across London). I�m famous for that though, I tend to err on the side of not believing the hype, a la Public Enemy.

It was only about three or four weeks ago, after my flatmate�s accidental stop on the �Dirty Harry� video one night, while I was in another room working.

Said keyboards, bass line and chorale, made me stop what I was doing, get up and go into the living room, calling incredulously as I went, �What are you listening to?�

That my friends, is all Big Mami wrote on the matter�

from Demon Days


David Makalaster  performed by Les Claypool’s Frog Brigade
Recommended by kylemangan [profile]

Bass Masta' Les Claypool is at it again with with bizzare arangment about our favorite news anchor. Very Frank Zappa

from Purple Onion (Prawn Song)


Change Your Mind  performed by Sister Hazel
Recommended by aprophilix [profile]

"Change Your Mind" is heavy in vocals, with just a little bit of country style thrown in. This has nothing to do with why I like the song, however. Listen to the LYRICS! This song is on my personal "soundtrack to life", and I love to listen to it when I'd like a little inspiration. Give it a listen, and actually *listen* to what the song has to say.


available on CD - Fortress


Aunties Panties  performed by Heavy Cream
Recommended by texjernigan [profile]

I'm pretty sure that I marked the performer wrong, Heavy Cream or Aunties Panties, whatever, someone's got it somewhere. The track is wonderful and it makes you wonder why porn music is so often so bad these days.

from Insided Deep Note: Music of 1970's Adult Cinema



Some Red-Handed Slight of Hand  performed by Cursive
Recommended by jvspeck [profile]

Extremely catchy, while still unique and instrumentally experimental, with a definite heavy moodiness to it

from Ugly Organ


Hand Of Blood  performed by Bullet for my Valentine
Recommended by Handofblood08 [profile]

Fast paced, heavy, awesome. Guaranteed to get your blood pumping.

from The Poison
available on CD - The poison, Bullet for my valentine EP


Howl  performed by Florence and the Machine
Recommended by Nori [profile]

It can be hard to make out her lyrics in some places, but this song is glorious. I love the fragments of the poem from 'The Wolfman'. I also love 'Hardest of Hearts', 'Bird Song', and 'Heavy In Your Arms', among others.


available on CD - Lungs


Heavy Feathers  performed by The Holidays
Recommended by DeathandHarmony [profile]




Requiem Mass  performed by Amadeus Wolfgang Mozart  1791
Recommended by kaptnunderpnts [profile]

this music is absolutely haunting. it is powerful and heavy, yet has moments of absolute finesse.




These Desperate Hours  performed by Mel Torme  1955
Recommended by bobbyspacetroup [profile]

Here's another early Burt Bacharach composition, this one from (or just a promotional piece for?) the William Wyler film "The Desperate Hours." I haven't seen the movie, but this song makes me want to. This song is steeped in a heavy film noir atmosphere -- with vibes and wailing sax -- that I love. Needless to say, this has a very different sound from the stuff Bacharach would become famous for a few years down the road.


available on CD - Mel Torme At The Movies (Rhino)



Jesus Wash Away My Troubles  performed by Sam Cooke & The Soul Stirrers  1956
Recommended by antarctica [profile]

Pure gospel as only Sam Cooke can achieve. His soulful vocalization carries this song into heavy spiritual and emotional territory. Its beauty cannot be fairly defined.





How High The Moon  performed by June Christy  1959
Recommended by jeanette [profile]

Got a haircut today (short, choppy, fab). Getting a haircut often makes me think of June because she did have the greatest barnet ever - that fringe!

So I've pulled out my June collection - a paltry 4 LPs but growing - and am lovin' a bit of this tonight. The instrumentation here reminds me a lot of Ella Mae Morse's corner of the market, someone I should really get around to recommending on this site.

How High The Moon opens gentle as duck down, moving into a light finger snappin' mood then onto a heavy big band scat rhythm. Christy's technique is superlative and you can almost hear her intuitively measuring the band, taking each note perfectly.

This LP is a set of re-interpretations of songs June originally sang with the Stan Kenton Orchestra. Being a June novice, I'm not aware of the original version but I doubt I could like it more.

from June Christy Recalls Those Kenton Days (Capitol ST 1202)



Theme from the Traitors  performed by Packabeats  1962
Recommended by delicado [profile]

Another superb instrumental track which had vanished from my mind during the last few years, but which I found again yesterday during a self-indulgent marathon record-listening session. This is a very memorable theme, produced by Joe Meek. There's a cool opening with a catchy drum pattern. The rest of the instrumentation is organ, bass, and some very cool twangy guitars, often with some heavy reverb.


available on CD - Joe Meek Presents 304 Holloway Road (Sequel)



the end of the world  performed by skeeter davis  1963
Recommended by olli [profile]

the perfect teen heartbreak country ballad. the arrangement on this just BLOWS me away. check out the dissonant strings and the gentle steel guitar! not to mention skeeters vocals.. she never sounded better in my opinion, it just comes across as so goddamn heartfelt. marvel at the heavy, deadpan spoken word section at the end!
A desert island break-up song if there ever was one:)

Why does my heart go on beating
Why do these eyes of mine cry
Don't they know it's the end of the world
It ended when you said goodbye

from the end of the world (rca)



  jeanette: Skeeter sadly died earlier this month. This is a gorgeous song, also brilliantly done by brit-chick Twinkle who I've enthused about elsewhere on these pages. I also love Skeeter's poppier moments, in particular the superlative I Can't Stay Mad At You.
  olli: twinkle covered this? ooh, can't wait to hear it, i totally dig "golden lights"!
Spin, Spin, Spin  performed by Terry Callier  1964
Recommended by trivia [profile]

"Spin, Spin, Spin" is a graceful and romantic folk song which Callier sings with a smirk - almost as if he's in on a secret joke. His guitar phrasing is pitch perfect and his voice is both rich and subtle. HP Lovecraft covered this tune as a string-heavy psych-lite track on "HP Lovecraft II," but I prefer this original rendition's low-key and unpretentious acoustic charm.

from New Folk Sound of Terry Callier (Prestige)


He Ain’t Heavy, He’s My Brother  performed by The Hollies  1965
Recommended by acidburn [profile]

from The Hollies


Distant Shores  performed by Chad and Jeremy  1966
Recommended by delicado [profile]

A beautiful piece of soft pop. Ok, it's corny - the chord sequence is kind of soppy and the lyrics are kind of obvious, but the arrangement and singing are so lovely that I can listen to this song again and again. Opening with a catchy picked acoustic guitar riff, the arrangement soon thickens with with a full orchestra. The singing is deadly serious and amusingly precious throughout the song, and the orchestral arrangement, heavy on oboes and flutes as well as strings, is anything but hip. Still, the song’s simplicity and innocence are really quite charming. I never really got into any of Chad and Jeremy's other songs nearly so much as this one, so any recommendations for similar songs would be welcome. Do me a favor and listen to this and tell me if I’m crazy to love it so much.

from Distant Shores, available on CD




  tempted: Oh yes, it is pure gold. I can recommend anything by The Left Banke, Scott Walker, Margo Guryan, New Colony Six, Sagittarius, The Millennium... Gary Usher from the last two mentioned was the producer on many of C & J's songs.
Breve Amore  performed by Mina  1966
Recommended by delicado [profile]

Another great dramatic pop number by Mina, this song is from the comic Alberto Sordi film, 'Fumo di Londra'. The backing track is identical to that used in the film, although Mina's version was released separately as a single. What can I say? This is an other deeply affecting dramatic pop number in which Mina belts out the words in a heartfelt manner. If these are the same words I used to describe her track 'se telefonando', then that's because this song is pretty much in the same vein, with a heavy, brass-laden pop arrangement.
ps. a version of this song exists with none other than ME singing in Italian - reverb-laden vocals belted out karaoke style over the same background track.

from the single Breve Amore
available on CD - Studio Uno 66 (BMG Italy)




  tinks: the 'fumo di londra' soundtrack was recently reissued as a 2lp set, with tons of outtakes. i really, really love it. i'd make a recommendation from it right now, but i can't remember the song title, and the record isn't with me. argh!
  delicado: The one which really bowled me over was 'Mr Dante Fontana'! Like 3 brilliant songs rolled into one!
  tinks: wouldn't you know it? that was the one i was trying to remember! i couldn't recall if that was the title or if they just said "hey, mr. dante fontana" a lot.
  jeanette: Also from that Fumo Di Londra album: that fabulous 'You Never Told Me'. A Brit-girl-sound lost classic!
  delicado: Yes; that's actually an English-language version of this same song
who needs forever  performed by astrud gilberto  1966
Recommended by coffman [profile]

This exceptionally haunting and lyrical song by Quincy Jones has received its definitive interpretion by Astrud Gilberto with arrangement and accompaniment by the Brazilian organist Walter Wanderley. The melancholy urgency of the piece resonates well with the dark/sad tonality that pervades so much of Bossa Nova music, though its character is also reminiscent of certain otherwise very different pieces from the bebop era, which had a formative influence on Quincy Jones' music. There is definitely the remote influence of Charlie Parker and especially Dizzy Gillespie. It's truly a completely unique piece. The drifting melody which seems to skirt over the chord changes has a beautiful inevitability. Only a very gifted and skilled musician could have contrived such a beautiful work. So Quincy Jones deserves especial credit for crafting this song from the film "The Deadly Affair."

Astrud's delivery, so typically limpid and restrained, only serves to heighten the intensity of this darkly passionate song. The subtle but somehow fierce organ playing of Walter Wanderley acheives a sizzling romanticism that perfectly complements the reading of Astrud's apparently detached fatalism.

In my opinion, this track is a true musical masterpiece. Its remarkable economy of means is a testament to the skill of the composer as well as the artistry of the performers. In fact, it's a nearly perfect combination of expressive means and poetic intent. The beautiful resolution, with Astrud's perfect striking of the high B-flat over the half-diminished F-minor seventh, is a moment of sublime dramatic intensity, though profoundly understated, as is typical of her finest artistic moments. One is reminded of Miles Davis. Her poetic skill is rooted in subtlety.

I have listened to this extraordinary track hundreds of times, and always experienced chills rising up on the back of my neck. How amazing that this incredible musical gem was omitted from the original album A Certain Smile, A Certain Sadness. Perhaps it was too intense, too heavy; whatever the case, it's a truly remarkable piece of music.

I'm truly grateful to have discovered this great albeit minor musical masterpiece. There's really nothing else quite like it! The sizzling but subtle sensitivity of the rhythm section (Claudio Slon on drums, possibly Joao Gilberto on guitar and Jose Marino on bass) adds an intensity to the piece which helps project the almost existential tone of the song.

I'm really swept away by this obscure and neglected work, which attains -- for me at least -- to a peak of poetic intensity really rare in music. As is usual with Astrud at her best, it accomplishes its artistic ends with what seems like the most minimal of means. But subtlety is always the avenue to the most profound of artistic experiences. I think this is a remarkable example -- one of the greatest -- of the wedding of popular music and high art. It is a truly perfect performance. In my opinion, its greatness increases rather than diminshes with repeated listenings. There is only one word for that -- it's magic!

from A Certain Smile, A Certain Sadness, available on CD



  rio: you must pick-up the quincy jones soundtrack (released with the score to "the pawnbroker") with astrud singing "who needs forever". The lush quincy jones score is hauntingly beautiful, and astrud never sounded better. This version is the real deal for me..
  rferus: Amazing guitar on this piece.
Twilight Zone  performed by The Spiders  1966
Recommended by delicado [profile]

For many years I've continued my life under the misapprehension that one version of the Twilight Theme (in my case, the original Marty Manning version) would do me just fine. But this tremendous Japanese group sounds version is unmissable. Lots of random sound effects with a heavy influence from The Ventures in Space. It kicks off at 1:08 where the drums stop and the sound effects just take over. Lots of random twanging and watery bits. Really cool sounding. Then at 1:40 the drums come in hard and funky. There are a few more little breakdowns and it ends in total chaos leaving you feeling the aliens definitely are coming!

Basically it's a very well executed recording.


available on CD - GS Box Set


The Proper Ornaments  performed by The Free Design  1967
Recommended by scrubbles [profile]

So groovy. Outstanding popcraft from an outstanding group. Love the contrasts between such pretty music and Chris Dedrick's trenchant lyrics. The arrangement - heavy on the trumpets and harpsichords - is exquisite. Fetch me my paisley nehru jacket, Gweniviere.

from Kites Are Fun (Project 3)
available on CD - Raindrops (Siesta)




  tempted: Kites really are fun!
  charlesives: Blow your mind (but not completely)!
  konsu: See!!
  Delimit: defintely one of their better songs. it's one of those weird songs that every once and a while i need to listen to about 50 times in a row. great lyrics, Free Designs usual amazing vocals and some slick arrangement.
The Party  performed by Georges Delerue  1967
Recommended by bobbyspacetroup [profile]

A rockin' one and a half minute long instrumental unlike any other Delerue work I've come across. If you know of any other Delerue work like this, please let me know. The arrangement includes really heavy bass, wailing brass, surf guitar, organ, and drums. Maybe it's a little generic, but I like it.

from Our Mother's House OST (MGM)



Escape  performed by Armando Trovaioli  1967
Recommended by bobbyspacetroup [profile]

Most of the soundtrack to this comedy-caper flick is pretty standard '60s soundtrack material. This track, however, is moody, top-notch crime jazz... The arrangement is chaotic but stirring with some really heavy bass-piano, wailing brass, and organ (used more as an atmospheric sound effect than to deliver any melody). Special thanks to Darrell Brogdon for playing this on his Retro Cocktail Hour.

from Treasure Of San Gennaro (Buddah BDS-5011)
available on CD - Jazz In The Movies, Cinecitta (CAM (Italy))



Theme From "Blow Up"  performed by Bobby Hutcherson  1967
Recommended by gregcaz [profile]

This whole album is a masterpiece, but "Blow Up" is a track that should definitely be better known. It's a vibes-piano-bass-drums quartet session with Herbie on piano that inexplicably was never released at the time, only in Japan over a decade later. It was available on CD for a while in the early 90s, but has since been deleted. The track builds on a steady, understated 4/4 groove anchored heavy bass and creative drumming courtesy of Joe Chambers. Eight minutes of relaxed heaven, with messrs. Hutcherson and Hancock engaging in sublime vibes/piano dialogue over a very catchy theme. Seek out this album any way you can!

from Oblique (Blue Note)



Prelude in Black  performed by Cy Coleman  1968
Recommended by delicado [profile]

Both shocking and extremely cool, this has to be heard to be believed - a 'rock' adapation of Rachmanninov's Prelude in C# minor which really does rock. Cy Coleman lays a huge funky breakbeat and a heavy bassline on top of the beautifully dark, doomy theme. A jazzy guitar comes in and out as the track builds. I've never heard anything quite like it (I mean that in a good way). I am now unable to hear the original piece without Cy Coleman's breakbeat!

from The Ages of Rock (MGM)



Curso Intensivo De Boas Maneiras  performed by Tom Zé  1968
Recommended by tinks [profile]

You've got to love a guy who has a song on his first album that translates as "Catechism, Toothpaste and You". From that same LP, here's a great off-kilter tropicalia with a heavy baroque-pop influence and really odd instrumentation, featuring fuzz guitar, organ and trumpet in a very nice way.

from Tom Zé, available on CD



Samba Blim  performed by Tamba 4  1968
Recommended by sambablim [profile]

This 1968 LP out on CTI/A&M records was a big leap fpr the group formerly known as Tamba Trio. It spawned big bossa hits like the title track Samba Blim, my absolute favorite for hip acid jazz(nu-jazz/ Rare Groove)dancefloors from London to Tokyo to even Phoenix,AZ. It's fusion of traditional Bossa Nova, Samba, and 60's Jazz melodies are delectibale to the ears. Nice songs that will get you groovin' are "Samba Blim", Reza", "Tristeza de no dois", and "Baiano". A big LP in my DJ box. A pretty heavy cost for a mint copy, but mine is only VG condition full of pops and crackles. I STILL LOVE IT!!!

from Samba Blim


Jane B  performed by Jane Birkin  1968
Recommended by delicado [profile]

This song is living proof that whatever you try to do, if you execute it well, the rest can take care of itself. Serge didn't even bother writing a song (this is just an arrangement of Chopin's prelude in E minor). But the song is excellent, and stands up to (at least several hundred) repeated listens. There's a slow, jerky beat, and a heavy bassline. Birkin's delicate vocal works well with this backing, and the whole thing has a very hip feel.


available on CD - Master Serie Vol. 1 (Polygram France)


Everything That Touches You  performed by The Association  1968
Recommended by john_l [profile]

This is the sound of ecstasy, the most joyful song to ever hit the charts! Quite unlike the mope-rock of recent decades (although I like the Smiths too). It just rings out, I think because it has a very heavy emphasis on the "dominant" musical tone.

The Association, of course, had several huge hits in the 1966-68 period, like "Cherish", "Windy", and "Never My Love", and the also-wonderful "Along Comes Mary" (their debut), but in my opinion "Everything That Touches You" is definitely their best.

from Greatest Hits, available on CD



  konsu: Yes indeed! Birthday is such a great album. I think this one was a minor hit for them, but the rest of this record is just as worthy of exhaltations. Check out the tune "Like Always" as well. Pure genius!!
  tinks: i heart birthday. but then again, i heart the association. even stop your motor.
  ronin: Their interweaving vocal harmonies still blow me away, especially on songs such as this one, my personal fave. "Insight Out" was 1st album we ever purchased independent of parents. "Requiem for the Masses" is another powerful harmonic tour de force. Who sings (not yells) like this anymore? Every member of the group (even Brian!) sang.
  Goes Up To 11: My then-girlfriend (now wife) and I had breakfast with the Association at about 2 am in the Atlanta Hyatt-Regency's coffee shop after a concert at Georgia Tech in 1969 or 1970. Nice guys! Although the Association took a lot of critical heat in the years since, I remember them as extremely professional musicians, able to precisely recreate their complex studio vocal harmonies live in concert. Part of the reason may have been that they were the first band I remember employing a mixing board out in the audience during a concert, something that became standard practice in the industry within a few years afterwards.
The Face I Love  performed by Chris Montez  1968
Recommended by heinmukk [profile]

nice one! i discovered chris montez lately and i like what he has done.
this song is a cover of astrud gilbertos song from the album "beach samba" (which i didn't recognize until reading it at allmusic.com) and begins with a nice organ-melody as an intro. i especially like the sound of that organ, it's a very sweet and not to heavy one. so that it fits perfect into the mood of this song and giving it a little more sweetness.
as always chris montez sings like a woman and if one doesn't know this it wouldn't be necessarily clear to one. (correct english....?)
while searching for chris montez stuff i came across "the more i see you" performed by montez which was covered last year by a onehitwonderband here in germany and you couldn't escape to hear it at least twice a day no matter where you were leaving and going. the cover was very strict arranged along montez' version. i wonder how i would think of the montez original if this onehitwonder band wouldn't have done this cruelty?!
anyway, last years summer was great anyway...(sex every day...)
and now, you go and listen to that montez guy!!

from watch what happens
available on CD - Digitally Remastered Best


I Can See Only You  performed by Roger Nichols & The Small Circle Of Friends  1968
Recommended by laughingmood [profile]

The perfect example of the kind of soft pop song I love. Heavy with melencholy. The strings and clarinet on this track break my heart. The fadeout is one of the greatest in history.

from Roger Nichols@ The Small Circle Of Friends (A&M)
available on CD - The Complete Roger Nichols & The Small Circle Of Friends



  olli: hmm, just made me curious. i generally hate fadeouts..they always seem to obscure some kind of interesting or trippy stuff that was starting happen in the studio:) gotta check it out though, thanks.
  eftimihn: This one was arranged by Bob Thompson not Nick DeCaro. Actually i just wanted to recommend this, because today i received my newly reissued copy by Rev-Ola. An even more complete 20 track edition, fantastic remastering, extensive essay and at a reasonable price tag. Awesome.
  laughingmood: Thanks for the info on Bob Thompson's arrangment on this track. All I've ever had is the Japanese reissue and I've never been able to fully read all the info! I'll have to change that. I really need to get that new reissue. I've heard the liners and photos are all really nice.
  delicado: I also have the japanese issue. Are there extra tracks on the Rev-Ola one?
  eftimihn: The Rev-Ola one has one additional track compared to the japanese 19-track version and it's "St. Bernie The Sno-Dog". It was Roger Nichols' first ever recording in 1964 and is, quite frankly, absolutely forgettable (waltzing child-like song, with yodeling and funny voices, makes you feel rather uncomfortable after the preceding soft rock bliss). Nichols refers to this as "a pile of crap" in the essay/liner notes, a track he never really wanted to do. Just read the essay and must say it's wonderfully done. I have to stress that the sound quality on the new Rev-Ola issue is absolutely amazing, surpassing the japanese one on every level: Virtually no background noise, clearer highs, bass is rendered deeper and better, the harmonies got even silkier, overall better dynamics and resolution. It just won't get any better than this. So, kudos to Rev-Ola...
  laughingmood: Wow! That is very cool. Generally I think Rev-Ola's remasters tend to be a bit on the trebley side but of course I'll pick this up. Mainly for the liners by Steve Stanley. This album has been in my top five since I heard it, yet...I know very little of the detailed background because of the japanese liners. Steven Stanley also did the Bergen White reissue liners and is the head of LA-based pop act, The Now People.
  konsu: Hmmm... Once again no mention of Smokey Roberds. He was in the closely related A&M group The Parade. He claims partial writing credits for this in an interview : http://www.doctorroberds.com/parade.html ... If you like this album you owe yourself a listen of that "other" great one-off long player. They do a great version of "Kinda Wasted Without You" thats more raw with less overdubs. Really a magical time at A&M!
"Midnight Circus"  performed by Aluminum Dream  1968
Recommended by Frumious [profile]

Wow, I thought I was the only person alive who remembered them. A girl Cynthia I knew raved about them, and I saw them several times, once opening for Janis Joplin at the Village Theater. "Midnight Circus" was the highlight of the sets I remember, lots of swirling Farfisa organ (I seem to remember a very atractive girl playing it), and a very carchy chorus - of which I only remember "It's a Midnight circus"... I don't know if the song was ever recorded, either as part of a set or demo, but it was that good it should bew noted....





  billybarth: hi frumious I am the ex-guitarist of Aluminum Dream and Midnight Circus was written by Allen Landon, the other guitarist. We never recorded it as a band. I don't know if he recorded it later with anyone else. In fact, we never released a recording. There are two demos...I have one, an acetate. The girl keyboardist was Joan Silver. Cynthia was my girlfriend at the time...if Cynthia Hoge is who you are thinking of. How is it possible to remember a song played live in 1968 at the Anderson Theatre and never recorded? Is there a bootleg version floating around out there. Let me know.. thanks, stay high Billy Barth
Heat Proof  performed by The Upsetters  1969
Recommended by tinks [profile]

Excellent organ-heavy song centered around the rhythm of Otis Redding's "Hard to Handle". Nice and fluid. Everything that is great about Jamaican soul in one neat little package, from Lee Perry's debut album as producer.

from The Upsetter, available on CD



New Song  performed by Judy Mackenzie  1969
Recommended by Ashley [profile]

God-bothereing at its finest. Judy Mackenzie was a late 60s folkie with a Christian perspective who was ushered into the studio in 1969 courtesy of tiny label Key. The album isn't that great, but this uplifting brass-heavy pop tune and the the iredeemably sad strum-along Sally Brown are simply divine. Both can be found on the excellent Resurrcetion CD.

from Judy (Key)
available on CD - Resurrection (Second Coming)


The Breath of Death  performed by Ennio Morricone  1969
Recommended by tinks [profile]

Morricone seems to have taken quite a few pages from Komeda's score for "Rosemary's Baby" here for the soundtrack to this Dario Argento serial killer movie. This track features some creepy heavy breathing, cascading dissonant piano notes, and some of the scariest "la-la-la"-ing ever committed to wax. I've never seen the movie, but based on the record, I'm pretty certain that it would scare the hell out of me.

from The Bird with the Crystal Plumage (Capitol ST-642)



  sodapop651: the movie is pretty whack.
driver  performed by the damnation of adam blessing  1969
Recommended by shaka_klaus [profile]

one of my fave dj's, michael wink, played this at the 1st sinful swedish mod weekender. i was kind of doped (kids, don't use hard drugs...) up so i really liked it. it's a heavy, "beardy", as my friend ricky rickenbacker would describe it, kind of a tune. late 60's garagerock... i really like it. the cover of the 45 shows the guys bare breasted. mmmm.

from back to the river single (ua 35159)


21st Century Schizoid Man  performed by King Crimson  1969
Recommended by SolarLuna96 [profile]

Nice and heavy, love the solo, the distorted vocals, everything.

from In the Court of the Crimson King



  Mike: I always liked Moonchild, also from the first album, and felt it influenced the early seventies Genesis sound.
Don’t Go Breaking My Heart  performed by Wilson Neves e Seu Conjunto  196?
Recommended by sodapop650 [profile]

This whole LP will make all you Ed Lincoln fans happy. It is a group led by Wilson Neves, the percussionist on a lot of major Bossa releases including all the Eumir Deodato LPs released on Equipe. This track is not the Elton John Kiki Dee version but the earlier Burt Bacharach version. The whole LP is loaded with great organ heavy instrumentals and dance-floor-burners performed by an extremely tight combo. Best of all its available on CD as part of the Odeon 100 Anos series. A lot of groups on the Parlophone label could crank out the cheesey sixties-organ sound and Bacharach covers but not many could match the rythms of Das Neves. How do they say it - ritmo calliente!

from Juventude 2000, available on CD



  delicado: Funny - I just compiled this track the other day. The album sounds great, but my copy is an extremely scratchy Colombian pressing; I'll have to pick up the CD.
feathered fish  performed by sons of adam  196?
Recommended by shaka_klaus [profile]

heavy 60's garage... lots of guitars and even some double bass drumming? wicked guitar solo... i seem to like this late very white 60's garage thing. well, i guess we're all human beings.





  artlongjr: This song grew on me, I originally heard about it because it was a cover tune given to the band by Arthur Lee of Love. I have it on one of my many garage compilations, it's one of the best songs on there. Don't ever feel bad about garage band music, I love the stuff and I am black myself. Of course, a lot of garage bands were influenced by black musicians, especially the great Bo Diddley.
petrol pop  performed by michel magne & jean yanne  196x
Recommended by olli [profile]

ultra-trippy middle east-influenced song celebrating the joys of gasoline, from french avantgarde easy listening composer/arranger michel magne. very heavy in the strings department.
it sounds like it was written for a commercial or something, what with the moany female vocals and all, but my french is pretty goddamn terrible, so i wouldn't know:)


available on CD - shake sauvage



Die herren dieser welt  performed by Hildegard Knef  1970
Recommended by delicado [profile]

From the same album which spawned the mindblowing 'Im 80 Stockwerk' comes this superb track. It opens slowly, with a moody guitar/vocal introduction. Soon the heavy Burt Bacharach influence of 'Stockwerk' returns, as the strings come in and the song develops. The beat is funky in a gentle late-sixties pop kind of way. I have no idea what Hildegard is singing, but it sounds rather positive and uplifting, and I’m a big fan of her smoky voice.

from Knef (Decca)
available on CD - Fur Mich... (box set) (BMG Germany)




  AndreasNystrom: Really great song!, nice rhythm and harmonys.
  bellboy: this song is about "masters of this world" - the text would stir you up rather than just lift you up. It breathes the same air as a song by Alexandra "Mein Freund der Baum". Heavy bittersweet german Weltschmerz. One of the Knef's best songs is "Von nun an ging's bergab" which means "From now it went downhill". She tells us her story: Her birth in cold winter, her film career in the USA, her return to Germany, starting a second career as a singer - and everytime she comments ironically: "From now it went downhill" which is VERY funny! The last words of this song comment herself as a singer: "Es war nicht meine Schuld - ich bitte um Geduld" - "It wasnn't my idea to start singing, please be patient with me"
  heimwehblues: To "bellboy": "Von nun an ging's bergab" is performed by Hildegard Knef as "From Here On It Got Rough" (LP "The World of Hildegard Knef"), last lines: "A change was overdue, from here it's rough on you.".
  eftimihn: Warner Music Germany finally released "Knef" on CD ahead of the celebration of Hildegard Knef's 80th birthday. While it's completely beyond me why people had to wait until 2005 to get this masterpiece in it's entirety, i'm thrilled that it's finally arrived. Also, Hildegard Knef repeatedly expressed "Knef" was her best album.
  n-jeff: "From Here On It Got Rough" is the opening track on teh recent (2005) compilation "the in-kraut". And very witty it is too. But also a very groovy song.
To Cry You a Song  performed by Jethro Tull  1970
Recommended by kouros [profile]

There's a great dynamics in this piece of prog-rock as it combines sharp and interesting melodies with great but simple soundscape. There's a lot of air in the record an Martin Barre's guitarplaying sounds easy on top of heavy riffing duet of bass and drums .Ian Anderson's vocals are just perfect for this song. I would not change a thing here.

from Benefit


I Am the Walrus  performed by Spooky Tooth  1970
Recommended by schlick [profile]

The band transforms the classic Beatles hit song into a great, heavy, throbbing rocker.

from The Last Puff (A&M (US) / Island (UK))


Zazueira  performed by Astrud Gilberto & Stanley Turrentine  1971
Recommended by tinks [profile]

A very funky track from Astrud's final US album. Very bass-heavy and percussive, just an excellent song. Stanley Turrentine's tenor sax doesn't meld with Gilberto's voice nearly as well as Stan Getz' warmer tones did, but that's a minor flaw that doesn't detract from the overall song too much.

from Gilberto with Turrentine, available on CD


I'm Gonna Miss You  performed by The Mingles  1971
Recommended by john_l [profile]

My favourite Canadian rock single of all time. It's a slow one, which starts with solo piano, picks up the acoustic guitar, then gets a heavy fuzzy guitar in the chorus that complements the melody perfectly. Then repeat! With an organ and full band. Followed by a nice guitar solo at the end! Add in some interestingly-placed key changes (which are necessary to keep it level) and you've got a masterpiece, says I. Needless to say, I'm the only person on the planet outside the artists themselves who remembers it ...




Fantasia tragica  performed by Stelvio Cipriani  1971
Recommended by eftimihn [profile]

This is one of these sensationally sensual, wonderful instrumental tracks only the italians could pull off in late sixties/early seventies. This is the title theme to "La morte cammina con i tacchi alti/Death walks on High Heels", one of the numerous gialli (thriller movies with that special italian touch) to come out of italy in heavy doses from the late sixties up to the mid seventies. Wonderful scores have been one of the constitutive elements of these films and while the scores that Ennio Morricone did for these movies (e.g. "L'ucello dalle piume di cristallo/Bird with the crystal plumage, "Cosa avete fatto a Solange/What have they done to Solange", Una lucertola con la pelle di donna/Lizard on a womans skin" or "Le foto proibite di una signora per bene/ Forbidden fotos of a lady above suspicion") have been long released, a lot of excellent music is still locked up in the vaults of CAM, Cinevox and other italian soundtrack labels. Thanks to the hard work of the guys at DigitMovies a lot of these scores now successively get a proper, remastered release (often for the first time ever), music otherwise would have been lost in oblivion forever. Stelvio Cipriani may not be remotely as well known as Morricone (who, naturally, overshines just every other italian composer), but he was very prolific in the heyday of italian cinema, scoring an equally wide range of different genres from westerns to gialli and from romantic movies to italain police (so called "poliziotteschi") and crime movies. This title track of "La morte cammina con i tacchi alti" doesn't have to hide behind the best of themes Morricone did, in fact the orchestration does sound very Morricone itself with an uptempo-ish bossa nova beat, lush strings, wonderful harpsicord and a female voice carrying the main melody with a bitterweet tone. The voice is delivered by Nora Orlandi, one of the very few female soundtrack composers and she could easily be mixed up with Edda Dell'Orso here. Wonderful stuff, recommended for anyone who enjoys the "Mondo Morricone" comps.

from La morte cammina con i tacchi alti, available on CD



Maggie May  performed by Simtec & Wylie  1972
Recommended by tinks [profile]

Okay, I know what you're thinking. Rod Stewart?? But hold your horses, buckeroos! This is one incredible funky take on Rod's old show-stopper. Simtec & Wylie were a duo from Chicago who were modeled after such testifyin' '60s soul acts as Sam & Dave, Williams & Watson, Bob & Earl, Mel & Tim and the like. In the early 70s, they signed up with Gene Chandler's (of "Duke of Earl" fame) vanity label, Mister Chand. There, somebody convinced them that recording a cover of "Maggie May" would be a great idea. It was. First of all, they got rid of that exasperatingly unfunky mandolin intro from the original and replaced it with an electric guitar with heavy feedback. They also sped the tempo up considerably, transforming the whole thing from something rather cloying into a defiant statement...these boys aren't content to remember their time with Maggie, they're back to show her what they've learned in the meantime.

from the single Maggie May (Mister Chand)


Jazz Potatoes  performed by Jorge Ben  1973
Recommended by gregcaz [profile]

This lost Jorge Ben stormer has a rawer sound and harder rock edge to it than usual during this, his greatest period. Relegated to an obscure soundtrack LP, it stomps all over the place at a slower, heavier and more menacing tempo than anything on "Ben" or "A Tabua De Esmeralda." The beat is anchored by that famous acoustic guitar sound, heavy bass and a loud cowbell, as Jorge yells out improvised nonsense in a hilarious mix of Spanish and English! "Rock Steady-O!!" Must be heard to be believed.

from A Volta De Beto Rockfeller (Soundtrack) (Polydor)


Take Me With You  performed by Lyn Christopher  1973
Recommended by mr_klenster [profile]

Sinister and spacy, slightly discordant, gospel-inflected soul groove, with a murderous, high-powered bassline. Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley of Kiss apparently sing background vocals on this artist self-titled album, and strangely enough it's their backing that makes this sound sort of reminiscent of a gospel session, but in space maybe. Begging lyrics and tripped out reverb enhance the strange, infectious hold of this song. This is a very heavy, mournful, and unique sound experience. Recommended.





Balance of Nature  performed by Burt Bacharach  1973
Recommended by konsu [profile]

What a great song! Burt's a heavy hitter on these pages, as you can tell I'm sure. There is something magical when he sings, maybe it's because he seems to humble the incredible songs he writes, or that he works with the best singers to walk the earth. Here is Burt at his best, in a spare setting with a strolling rhythm and paced piano chords, almost like he's singing to you across a smoky piano bar. The song conveys a simple truth, and almost makes it seem like a gospel, that nature continues unabated despite human trials and tribulations... How true.

A hard LP to get your hands on it seems. But worth the wait!

from Living Together (A&M SP 3527)


Easy Money  performed by King Crimson  1973
Recommended by mardikas [profile]

Has a heavy sound, ethereal and complex rhythm. Guitar, bass guitar, violin, 2 drummers. I like it because it is insanely groovy.

from Larks' Tongues in Aspic


Red  performed by King Crimson  1974
Recommended by Stian______ [profile]

Guitars and more guitars. These are the gods of heavy prog rock. Robert Fripp on lead guitars pounds out an unforgettable growling monster of an instrumental. Its atmospheric,dreamy,nightmarish and kind of taunting in places .Its simply great.

from Red, available on CD



  ronin: The entire album is a gem of guitars and pounding beats, much harder overall than, say, "Lizard." "One More Red Nightmare" is another hard out rocker featuring the vocal talents of bassist John Wetton, but I find the most haunting song to be the West Side Story-esque "Fallen Angel."
As Strong As Samson  performed by Procol Harum  1974
Recommended by john_l [profile]

Best known for their organ-drenched debut 1967 hit "A Whiter Shade Of Pale", Procol Harum continued for quite a long while and in fact have re-formed in recent years. A lot of their 1970s songs seem to have an odd jerkiness about them, but "As Strong As Samson" is the one in which they put it all together properly, 'cause it's smooth, heavy, and it swings! With organ, piano, and pedal steel guitar all pitching in, surely this is high up somewhere in the 1970s top ten songs.

Produced by Chris Thomas, who later did "Back On The Chain Gang" for the Pretenders and the "Different Class" LP for Pulp, so that's quite a line of quality there.

from Exotic Birds and Fruit (Chrysalis)
available on CD - The Chrysalis Years (Chrysalis)


Bitter-Sweet  performed by Roxy Music  1974
Recommended by delicado [profile]

For someone like me, the strangest thing about getting really into Roxy Music is the overt rockiness of a lot of their material. Even on this track, which is one more of their slower, more mournful numbers, there are a lot of very heavy rocky moments. They work pretty well though, and I'm certainly not complaining.

The atmospheric opening is breathtaking, and Bryan Ferry's vocal as he sings 'I've opened up my heart' is incredibly beautiful. The words and music seem to meld together in a very pretty way, but then before long the track mutates into a stomping, carnival like passage that clearly influenced Nick Cave to a considerable extent. Throughout the song there's this interchange between delicate, melodic verses and the rowdy, discordant section. Like another favorite Roxy track, 'Just like you', this song finishes with a clever chord change.

I'm sure many people would find 'Bitter-Sweet' much too dramatic and serious - perhaps some days I would too - but it does have an incredible elegance and style that makes me keep on listening.

from Country Life, available on CD



The Detectives  performed by Alan Tew  1974
Recommended by nighteye [profile]

Another "detective themed" song that sounds like the backside of the theme from 'The Streets of San Fransisco'. Heavy basses, powerful percussion, trumpets and a cool melody to top it off. Run before they catch you!


available on CD - The Sound Gallery (Scamp)




  n-jeff: This is a variation of one of the tracks off the "Hanged man" Soundtrack. There is also a third version I believe on a library record soemwhere. Anyway, its well worth tracking the Hanged Man down, its been re-issued by DC recordings and on bootleg (vinyl and cd). The original on contour can be expensive. I think moviegrooves have the re-issues.
  nighteye: You're right n-jeff there are a variation of it on the 'Hanged Man' soundtrack avaiable at Moviegroovies.co.uk. I also recognize the track 'Smokey Joe the Dreamer', not sure from where - but it might have been on one of the 'Dusty Fingers' compilations?
  n-jeff: Tew was one of many UK composers who also did shedloads of Library music, so it could have been anywhere, TV, Film, another LP.
For lots of information on the UK Lounge/ Library/ Collecting thing have a look around www.vinylvulture.co.uk.

  nighteye: There are a shitload of variations and other builds on the same theme on a De Wolfe compilation called "Alan Tew - Drama Suite Part 1". I think that's the library record you are thinking of n-jeff.
Zimbabwe  performed by Miles Davis  1975
Recommended by G400 Custom [profile]

Recorded live in Osaka on 1 February 1975, immediately before the man took a break for several years, this track makes up one entire disc of the overlooked album 'Pangaea'. Gone are the multitude of keyboard players that dominated Miles's work over the previous few years, to be replaced by brutal guitars and African percussion. The real change however is Sonny Fortune's alto sax, a welcome relief after Wayne Shorter's squeaky soprano. It lasts more than 40 minutes, but if you like mind-blowingly heavy acid-funk-rock-jazz (or early-70s Zappa) than 'Zimbabwe' is for you.

from Pangaea, available on CD


Ernie’s Reise  performed by Grobschnitt  1976
Recommended by john_l [profile]

Grobschnitt were a German progressive rock band that specialized in a rather frothy style with plenty of lead guitar work that is light rather than heavy. This track kicks off what is probably their best-known LP "Rockpommel's Land", and it's the prettiest eleven minutes you've ever heard! Ostensibly it tells the story of a boy named Ernie and a bird called Maraboo that's carrying some beer bottles, was smoking a pipe and was lit contrary to regulations. The whole LP is excellent!

from Rockpommel's Land, available on CD


Paper Thin Hotel  performed by Leonard Cohen  1977
Recommended by delicado [profile]

This sounds very different from most of what I've recommended. In fact, there are days when I wouldn't want to listen to this song at all. It is pretty incredible, however. I like it both for its remarkable mood and instrumentation (this is a Phil Spector production), and for its lyrical content (a melancholic but resigned tale, remembering a love affair). Leonard sings 'A heavy burden lifted from my soul/I learned that love was out of my control', with a reverb effect on his voice, accompanied by a sweet string arrangement and a faint, echoey backing choir. His delivery is casual, yet committed - a style that definitely influenced Nick Cave.

from Death of a Ladies' Man, available on CD


Julie With...  performed by Brian Eno  1977
Recommended by bugbarbecue [profile]

Picture yourself in a boat on a river.

Actually, in this case it happens to be the middle of the ocean. Just drifting any direction. No land in sight, nothing else on the water, not even any clouds. No distractions. Just you, the boat, and the water.

Oh, and Julie -- she's there -- with her open blouse, gazing up into the empty sky.

What's so powerful about Eno's "Julie With..." (and this is perhaps representative of his entire career) is that he gives you an experience in perfect detail, as if reading a book.

Even if you discount the lyrics, which, although not exactly Shakespearian, are clear and unambiguous, there is no escaping the image that Eno is presenting.

Casting aside any overanalysis, what we're left with is an outstanding bit of relaxing, but emotionally evocative chillout music. Completely beatles, the instrumentation is typical Eno: pad synthesizers, minimoog and guitar with heavy chorus. Not something you'd throw on at an afterparty, but great for a sunset in solitude.

from Before And After Science, available on CD


Macumba  performed by Nicos Jaritz Sextet  1978
Recommended by human-cannonball [profile]

The famous Austrian percussionist Nicos Jaritz recorded a local best-seller LP in 1978 called 'Macumba', full of percussion-heavy jazzy pieces with a latin feel. This is the title track, a haunting flamengo-flavoured mid-tempo jazzy groove with a flawless interplay between a heart-breaking Spanish guitar and a tenorsax solo. I haven't been exposed to many tunes like this, it's really most entertaining, and very, very fresh-sounding!

from Macumba LP (Amadeo Osterreichische)


Gates of Babylon  performed by Rainbow  1978
Recommended by Mike [profile]

Sheer joy to listen to - a perfect example of the extended melodic heavy rock song. Superb control of tension and release. Super arrangement and guitar playing. Currently very under-valued...

from Long live rock 'n' roll, available on CD



  Issie: A good choice!
  anotherdodgybassplayer: Fantastic choice, always been my favourite. Loved it since I was 14. (now 39). The instrumental section is just as good as it gets.
The Electrician  performed by Scott Walker  1978
Recommended by geezer [profile]

The real beginning of Scott Walkers heavyweight reputation as avant garde miserabalist,droning synths fall apart at the explosive chorus and then drone again before dignified strings take you to another place before once again you come back to a fading drone ,exhausting ,exhilarating and uncomfortable but a genuine new musical territory at the time ,its influence can be heard on Bowie,s "Cat People",Japans "Ghosts" and even "In The Air Tonight" by Phil Collins ,(that tense guarded intro morphing into something more open and glorious through various layers ).
Buried at the end of an ill advised Walker Brothers album Nite Flights this is essential.

from Nite Flights, available on CD


Holocaust  performed by Crisis  197?
Recommended by mattypenny [profile]

Great Lost Punk Single #3

Going all heavy on your arses now...as you might guess from the title this is a serious agit-prop single, but with a great, catchy punk tune. I guess it you like 'Holidays in Cambodia', you'll like this.

Dunno if its available on CD or not to be honest.

from Crisis E.P.


Breaking The Law  performed by Judas Priest  1980
Recommended by brooksyinc [profile]

A great metal song, which, fittingly, is a great song to "Break The Law" too. Not that I'm saying you should :)

from British Steel


(Want You) Back In My Life Again  performed by The Carpenters  1981
Recommended by scrubbles [profile]

One of the last Carpenters singles from their final studio album. I find this sweet 'n perky song strangely compelling, since it shows Richard and Karen Carpenter awkwardly trying to adjust their wholesome image to an early '80s synth pop template. Karen's voice is so processed and overdubbed that she blends in seamlessly with the synth-heavy backup -- still, the effect isn't cheezy but full and lucious. Knowing that Karen was slowly dying during this time makes this tune odder still.

from Made In America, available on CD


Your Turn, My Turn  performed by The Go-Betweens  1981
Recommended by Dalriada [profile]

This track is on one of those New Wave compilations that I tend to hoard but never really listen to. Well, yesterday I listened to it and found this precious jewel that's been on constant repeat ever since. I've always known about The Go-Betweens, people always told me "The Go-Betweens this", "The Go-Betweens that" and "Why don't you listen to The Go-Betweens?" but, honestly, I never really bothered to. They didn't sound that exciting to me. But this here! Like most ingenious and overwhelming things, at 3 minutes running time it is much too short and yet it is just long enough. It is 3 minutes of concentrated beauty, drama, new-wavy-angst and poetry. It feels like a heartbreak after a night of heavy boozing with its swaying, jerky melody and Forster's manic-depressive vocal performance. Actually, I should try listening to it after a night of heavy boozing and see if it can get any better than it already is.

from Send Me a Lullaby, available on CD


Boys of Summer  performed by Don Henley  1982
Recommended by StAgGeR [profile]

OK, OK, OK........I know that many of you hipster types out there are probably wincing at this recommendation, but...deal with it. I'm sure that most people are all too aware of this track, and probably avoid it at all cost, but in my humble opinion, this is one of the best pop radio songs ever recorded. I think I heard it first when I was about 12 or 13 while on summer break from school. I was immediately drawn to the eerie, repetitious, heavy delayed intro guitar line. Granted, it has some cheezy lyrics, and a fairly melodramatic tone overall, but this song will forever hold a special place in my heart....awe.


available on CD - yes




  callgirlscene: Yeah, this is an absolutely great song, a classic to my mind, yearning for that perfect love, that perfect moment, and the chance to prove ones self. And this comes from an Eagle, who weren't bad but have been way overplayed these last years on radio.
  konsu: I agree, Don nailed it with this one.It's eerie simplicity is what was great about the Eagles better tunes. It is too bad about overplay, at least in the USA. FM radio is like a Coke machine in a vegatable garden...
  Archipelago71: This is one of those few 80's songs that is still valid today. Instead of being about the excesses of the period, it's a very haunting song about missing something. Or is it about not looking back and having no regrets? You could probably argue for both sides of it. It's a true classic.
Subdivisions  performed by Rush  1982
Recommended by Mike [profile]

Heavy rock with synths - an effective combination as heard here. The famous Candadian heavy rock band of dubious politics here come up with a really gloomily atmospheric number. OK, I won't pretend it's great, but it has a certain something. And I love the chord textures generated on their synths, providing a backbone for the number.

from Signals, available on CD


As it is, when it was  performed by New Order  1986
Recommended by delicado [profile]

A classic 80s pop song, with New Order trademarks such as a super heavy bassline, strong drums and some frenetic guitar work. The lyrics aren't too bad for Bernard Sumner either - it's a touching (if not entirely coherent) story about lost love. A great song which fills me with nostagia.

from Brotherhood, available on CD




  frmars: No melody, poor voice, binary drums, rough and gritty instrumentation, It is a very bad song.
negative creep  performed by nirvana  1987
Recommended by VataMcPortaltech [profile]

from nirvanas first album this song is diabolically neat.its got a simple sludgey drop d riff and i wanna do a drum n bass remix of it.

from bleach, available on CD


Fine Art Of Friendship  performed by King�s X  1990
Recommended by MoeShinola [profile]

King's X is my favorite hard rock band by far. This song is on Faith Hope & Love, a very psychedelic record with a sound different from their others. They must have had the fairy dust going on at the recording sessions for this album because the sound is just beyond bluesy and groovy. The guitar just sounds...slinky! that's the word. Slink and snaky and dark. Their harmonies are a wonder to behold as usual, and the lyrics are mystical and weird.

from Faith Hope & Love (Megaforce UPC)


Honeytree  performed by The Wolfgang Press  1991
Recommended by robert[o] [profile]

A great track from a truly great LP that I fear might have slipped through the cracks in the floorboards in the decade or so since it's release. TWP's "Queer" remains the band masterpiece, an ungodly amalgam of Can, Talking Heads, Roxy Music, King Tubby and De La Soul. This song perfectly highlights the record's/band's strengths - Mark Cox's cut and paste/dub programming, Andrew Gray's blistering guitar, Mick Allen's brilliant "Tom Waits sings the Mark E. Smith Songbook" voice/words, aided by then Throwing Muses Leslie Langston's sexy bass/backgrounds vocals. The song is both seductive and sinister - the spoonful of sugar being the its' "The Fall Plays The Burt Bacharach Songbook" shambling groove that helps down the medicine that is Mick Allen's venomous lyrics in re: America's inaction/indifference in the face of the AIDS crisis. Rarely has subject matter so heavy, been dealt with in such light/deft manner. I recommend the whole "Queer" LP - particularly the British edition , which differs in tracklisting and uses of samples. (It is likewise available on the band's fine - if somewhat short - best of "Everything is Beautiful 1983-1995"

from Queer &/or Everything is Beautiful 1983-1995, available on CD



  konsu: I always liked these guys too. Queer did miss the mark in america for sure, although I think "Going South" got some airplay... I'm a big fan of the Birdwood Cage LP. A very underrated group from a very popular label.
Metal Warriors  performed by Manowar  1992
Recommended by rum [profile]

'Metal Warriors' is Manowar's call to arms, a joyous rallying cry to all the "Brothers of True Metal" of the world. Stand tall and proud, they implore, for the magic of the metal has brought you here. The power within each and every one unites them, and to exclusion of everybody else ("if you're not into metal, you are not my friend!"). Anyone that tries to suppress their might will be met with fearless defiance, "we don't turn down for anyone, we do just what we please!". And they live and die metal, and will not tolerate fakes and frauds and softies, "heavy metal, or no metal at all, wimps and posers, leave the hall!" rings out the epic chorus, "heavy metal, or no metal at all, wimps and posers� go on get out!"

So, anyway, put your reservations aside and head out into the streets to find this one, just this one*, awesome, thumping Manowar track. Spinal Tap were playing for laughs, this however, is frighteningly real.

*although 'Achilles, Agony, and Ecstasy in Eight Parts: Prelude/I. Hector Storms' their 30 minute interpretation of Homer's Iliad is certainly worth a listen.

from Triumph Of Steel (Warner 7567824232)


Come Together  performed by Primal Scream  1992
Recommended by claudiag [profile]

Fantastic electro-rock, perfect soundtrack to start a heavy clubbing week-end.

from Screamadelica (Emi)


Land Of Sunshine  performed by Faith No More  1992
Recommended by SamHall [profile]

The song is heavy, complex enough to be interesting, and simple enough to headbang. The bass is particularly awesome, with slap accents throughout. Not to mention Mike Patton's legendary vocals. The song seems to be about losing your mind as you grow older. It clearly has something to do with going mad, with Patton's screaming and laughing in the background between verses.

I really like this song for the punchy rhythm in bass(accompanied fantastically with the guitar, drums, and Bottum's carnival-like keyboard), and Patton's variance in vocal styles throughout.

from Angel Dust, available on CD


Engine No. 9  performed by Deftones  1994
Recommended by Vagina Man [profile]

This is one of the Deftones first songs that got them started. Although other hits off Adrenaline were played more, this is always a fan favorite. Deftones was one of the first artists to mix rap and heavy metal, and did a damn good job of it, paving the way for bands like Limp Bizkit and E-Town Concrete. If you like heavy music but want to just chill, this is for you, its heavy but it also has the ability to let you shwerve.

from Adrenaline (Columbia)


14:31 (Ob-selon mi-nos)  performed by Global Communication  1994
Recommended by Genza [profile]

I saw Global Communication play live in a church and they were, err, heavenly. This song probably showcases their celestial sound best. Weighing in at a mighty 14-plus minutes, it certainly takes time to get going. But that's the beauty. Like current darlings of the ambient music scene Boards of Canada and geniuses of the past such as Bowie and Eno, the wonder of the sound is in its slow-building intensity. Orchestral-like chords and heavy bass make this song an ambient must-have. But the whole album is a winner. Sell the fridge and let your food rot to own this one.

from 76:14 (Dedicated DED CD013)



Glory Box  performed by Portishead  1994
Recommended by kaptnunderpnts [profile]

the song is one of the most sensual i've heard. it has me singing lyrics that are all too clearly made for a woman to sing. the song has an awesome beat, onto which a great, heavy, solo guitar is thrown. and beth gibbons' voice- always great- is especially great on this track.

from Dummy



  FCS: Hey man... Since you're into Portishead, I think you may also like Goldfrapp, especially "Felt Mountain" album... Try listening to Horse Tears or Deer Stop!
Two Star  performed by Everything But The Girl  1994
Recommended by eftimihn [profile]

To me, Everything But The Girl are one of the most memorable bands of the 80s and 90s. What always strikes me is how their sound evolved from jangly, jazzy-pop in the beginning to polished, rather slick sophisti-pop in the late 80s/early 90s to sample-heavy, drum & bass/trip-hop influenced, house-embracing electronica at the end of their recording history in the mid/late 90s. Despite the change in sound they always managed to capture a consistency in the feel of the music, always revolving around the same themes over the years, dripping with melancholia, unrequited love, self-pity, romantic disillusionment etc. "Two Star" is a delicate, yet emotionally bleak ballad. Acoustic in sound, with piano, double bass and a wonderful string arrangement by Harry Robinson plus some cor anglais embellishments by Kate St. John.

from Amplified Heart, available on CD



Surrender to Me  performed by Boston  1994
Recommended by CinnaBeatle [profile]

This is a hard rock power ballad, close to heavy metal at points, from Boston's fourth album. It's extremely overlooked, especially since it compares with some of their biggest hits.

from Walk On


Davy Jones's Locker  performed by Flaming Stars  1995
Recommended by delicado [profile]

A superb instrumental, featuring a nice organ sound and the sublime twangy guitar of Johnny Johnson. I believe Johnny has now left the Flaming Stars (who are led by Max Decharne, once of Gallon Drunk), which is a shame - he is a masterful guitarist. This is a rather dramatic, moody track, opening gently and building up nicely with fast strummed guitars. While I doubt this is deliberate, the overall effect is reminiscent of some of the tracks on Morrissey's guitar-heavy 1992 album 'Your Arsenal'. Anyway, like much of the band's other material, this is a nice hybrid of 50s and 90s styles.

from Hospital, Heaven or Hell EP, available on CD



Hey Man, Nice Shot  performed by Filter  1995
Recommended by Stian______ [profile]

This is an extremely energic song. Heavy drums and distorted guitars seldom sound this good .This is a song to hear late in the night , when the naschspiel is growing dull-crank up the stereo and put this on ,if it doesnt liven up the audience then nothing will.

from Short Bus, available on CD


Victim�s Choice  performed by NoMeansNo  1995
Recommended by Tangento [profile]

This band is one of the tightest, most aggressive and imaginative 'hardcore' acts in modern music today.

This track would be a perfect introduction to NMN for the uninitiated listener.
If you like this one, you have about a dozen albums' worth of catching up to do.

Just marvel at the uninhibited pounding and tightly-woven rhythmic tapestries unleashed by bassist/ vocalist Rob Wright on 'Victim's Choice'.

NoMeansNo's style here can possibly be described as
'Devo Meets The Dead Kennedys'
...if one was so inclined to describe things.

This band just constantly and consistently manages to pour it on extra-tight, extra-heavy, and maniacally complex within the usually confining genre of 'Hardcore'.
(call it what you want, I am just attempting to simplify things here)

So don't be shy! This band will please a wide variety of listeners, from Jazz-Heads to Metal-Heads and many of the in-between-heads alike.

Band Website:
NoMeansNo

from The Worldhood of the World (as such), available on CD


Breathe Out  performed by Nothingface  1998
Recommended by Vagina Man [profile]

Breathe Out is one of those songs that no matter how many times you listen to it it still rocks. If you a metal head then you will appreciate the quality of music Nothingface throws at you. They are very heavy but melodic. The lead singer has a unique talent in which he can reach high notes as well as growl so deep he will make you shit yourself. Every time I hear this song all I can do is bang my head and scream along to the insanity that flows within my head.

from An Audio Guide to Everday Atrocity (Mayhem Records)


Head Up  performed by Deftones  1998
Recommended by Vagina Man [profile]

Deftones are a band that needs no introduction. They have been rockin the world for 7 years now, straight out of Cali. They have played with just about every band out there and have even been in a movie, The Crow 2. They are also known for covering the song Wicked by Ice Cube with another California band called Korn. Head Up rocks you from the moment it satrts till the time it finishes, if you want heavy this is it. Its not too crazy but at no point does it ever give off the immpression that it won't kick your ass. The song also has Max Cavalera (former lead singer of Sepultura and new lead singer and founder of Soulfly)singing backup vocals. If you play a sport and need a little bbost to get you in the mood to kick some ass, put this to your ears and let loose.

from Around the Fur (Columbia)


Mile of Fence  performed by Pete Droge  1998
Recommended by understudy constantine [profile]

Originally a Tom Petty sound-alike, but on the Spacey and Shakin' album sounding a whole lot like he's finally found himself a niche, Droge delivers a collection of guitar-heavy songs that tip the wink to grunge, but without the buzz of overblown amps. This is one of the heaviest and best... check out the break.

from Spacey and Shakin (FiftySeven Records)


All God’s Creatures  performed by Jason Falkner  1998
Recommended by snoodlededoogans [profile]

heavy guitar, a "liberace-esque" piano break, un-heavy lyrics. the guitar MAKES this song. jason can play...

from Can You Still Feel? (Elektra)


mo funky  performed by zoobombs  1999
Recommended by n-jeff [profile]

I think Zoobombs are a Japanese Heavy Metal band, but this is not metal, sort of groovy rock, maybe derived from the Stone Roses. Most of the words are in (presumably) Japanese but the chorus is English, and you can just imagine the meeting with an A&R man that gave rise to it. "You're a good band, y'know, you just need to get more funky". And he may have been right, this is mo funky, percussion, driving bass, great chorus, It gradually builds up and speeds up all the way through. Until it falls apart then the dub starts with guitars all over it. Classic.

from let it Bomb, available on CD




  penelope_66: I haven't heard anything from this album, but I love the song "Flat-Top" off their 'Welcome Back, Zoobombs!' album. I'd have to say there are some catchy tunes that pop up throughout the record, but overall it's rather mediocre and strikes a bit of ambivolence within my taste. One of those things you buy for a song or two.
  n-jeff: Let it bomb is a bit of a mixed bag, too. I love mo funky and mo dub, but don't play much of the rest of it.
granite state destroyer  performed by scissorfight  1999
Recommended by angelica [profile]

scissorfight are probably the heaviest band i've ever seen... their songs are incredibly intense, with deep, grinding bass lines, slow, thundering drums and aggressive vocals. granite state destroyer could be their theme song - it embodies both their musical aesthetic and their lyrical philosophy...

"weed, guns and axes / we don't pay our taxes / 'cause we don't exist / on any government list / ... / our battle cry / live free or die"

this is the song that hooked me on the band, and every time i hear the heavy yet pared-down opening riffs my tailbone starts shakin' and i can't stop.

from New Hampshire, available on CD


The Way that I Found You  performed by Ladytron  2000
Recommended by tempted [profile]

It's no matter what you do but how you do it! This is a darker song in the Ladytron repertoire and electro disco pop at its very best. Very synth bass heavy yet melodic thanks to these people who understand the recipe of making me happy! Ladytron succeed in making their highly synthetic music sound very organic. Just like Kraftwerk have always done. Apart from Kraftwerk this reminds me of... The Human League. But with a modern touch, leaving the trademark 8t's echoes out. Get up on the dancefloor!

from 604, available on CD



Coffee Talk - Yukihiro Fukutomi Remix  performed by Jazzanova  2001
Recommended by secularus [profile]

Although this track is not my favorite from Berlin's Jazzanova, I think it best represents the best bits of of their own work and their remixes for others. This track is a few years old but has been newly remixed by Japan's Fukutomi. Jazzanova are at the forefront of the nu jazz scene in the dance world. Beginning with a soulful piano introduction, the tune breaks into a heavy bass driven uptempo beat, sprinkled with a bit of a jazz scat, and a sample of a very haunting and seductive flute solo that sounds as if it has been lifted from an old soundtrack. The song however is not as simple as this review and must be listened to carefully to appreciate all that it offers.




Sublimation Hour  performed by Destroyer  2001
Recommended by mitchiavelli [profile]

'Destroyer' is neither a heavy metal nor a goth band. 'It' is Dan Bejar who is better known as one of the singers and song writers for Vancouver's 'the New Pornographers'.

'Sublimation Hour' is representative of Destroyer/Bejar's music. The music and lyrics are reminiscent of 70s David Bowie.

Be warned: Bejar's vocals are somewhat eccentric and not to everyone's taste (thank goodness the Pornographers have 3 vocalists).

Destroyer have a new album coming out October 8th (or thereabouts) on Misra: http://www.misrarecords.com/home.asp

from Streethawk: A Seduction, available on CD



  umbrellasfollowrain: I'm a big Destroyer fan. He's an amazing vocalis. I don't know what you're talking about. The new album wasn't all everyone had hoped for, but has a couple of good songs in particular "Students Carve Hearts out of Coal".
All the Time in Sunny Beach (noise therapy remix)  performed by Mad Capsule Markets  2001
Recommended by pouncyisdead [profile]

from Pulse EP, available on CD


Blood / Brass  performed by Black Lodge  2002
Recommended by jeanette [profile]

The very mysterious DJ Black Lodge, from Manchester. This is a person who played his cards so close to his chest that his first couple of singles didn't even name the tracks.

Blood / Brass combines the music from Dumbo (that 'Pink Elephants' tune) and some heavy dub. And, if that doesn't sound genius to you, well, I do despair.

A pendant's note: this track actually apears on two singles, his first on Acupuncture (where it appeared untitled and without so much dub content), and the remixed version that I am recommending here, a limited-edition release on an unknown label through the Rough Trade shop.

from the single Blood / Brass (Unknown Unknown)



Repined bastard nation  performed by Satyricon  2002
Recommended by olli [profile]

Satanist surf rock! (or a reasonable facsimile of that would sound like, anyway.)
From the land of polar bears and fjords
comes this insanely massive-sounding piece of black metal with a heavy dose of Dick Dale influences. It's quite poppy for a black metal tune, if you can see past the growling. I have to admit I've never actually listened too closely to the lyrics, i'm sure they're very misantrophic and gloomy and all, but this song feels very uplifting to me somehow. same thing as with Primal Scream's Detroit and Ennio Morricone's Magic and Extacy, i guess.
the synth effects round it out nicely, the guitars are fast and furious, and you got to love that drumming.


(One of these days I'm gonna have to make a mixtape with the world's most glaringly insane shifts of tone from one song to the next. This will fit nicely in between Dean Martin and Jean Jaques Perrey...)

from Volcano



Peel This Strip and Fold Here  performed by Candiria  2002
Recommended by Metalvangelist76 [profile]

Candiria is a band too prolific for their own good in my opinion. Mixing traditional and avan-garde jazz, heavy metal, hip-hop/rap, and everything in between.
Not a fan of hip hop and rap, myself, I refrain from anything they do in that style, but the rest of it is pure extreme, progressive, jazz, metal, instrumental genius.

from The Coma Imprint


Last Night  performed by Vitamin C  2003
Recommended by unathanthium [profile]

I used to be such a boy,but I have seen the terror of my ways.The Strokes have cornered a few hooks and terrorized them into submission,using them to tantalize testosterone top-heavy lads,making them dance like innocents caught in American/Iraqi crossfire;but I'm past that age where testosterone tampers with my thought processes.

Vitamin C,real name Colleen Fitzpatrick,ex-singer of Eve's Plum,has made Last Night,by blending it with Blondie's Heart of Glass,into the pop song it always wanted to be.Gone is the nasal whine of the original replaced by cool clear vocals that caress rather than puncture the ears.

On the 12" you get three versions.If you want a good dance work out you'll pick the A side.I favour track two,not so hurried I think it's slightly more reflective tenor illuminates where other versions obfuscate.





  gaymod: oh come on unathanthium, I iike your style, Last Nite, is a great song but it is a very obvious sub motown parody...and Dr. Feelgood- She Does It Right does it a milllion times better
  unathanthium: Sub motown,I love sub motown.Parody,I love that too.And if Dr.Feelgood do it better,congratulations to them.A million times better,though,hm,that's an awful lot of noughts.And I don't think we need a pub rock revival.
ha ha  performed by mates of state  2003
Recommended by catch_her [profile]

" It's difficult to place MOS in a genre as the song structures are unique, often complex. At the same time there are always the pop elements of catchy melodies and loads of harmony. Even though there are only two of them, they fill up the space with the monster, bass-heavy organ, creative drumming, and constant dueling vocals. The music can be sweet. At other times it's spastic, but either way, you leave MOS shows with a warm feeling.



Mates of State has been described by critics as unabashed joy, honesty at its best, a two piece with balls, and a band that you must see live. " (taken from official website)







amazing.

from team boo


Some Times Like The Tide  performed by Fordirelifesake  2003
Recommended by 6027 [profile]

melodic guitar, heavy feeling.

from Breathing in is only half the function


Soft Power  performed by Ladytron  2005
Recommended by robert[o] [profile]

This gorgeously ominous ditty seems to borrow [intentionally?] more than a little from The Creatures' ode to alcoholic decadence "2nd Floor", but even by Siouxsie and Budgie's standards this is a grim little number. Sort of the title track to the LP - "Witching hour...soft power", the chorus goes - this song evidences the group's successful movement away the explicit influences of The Human League/Fad Gadget/Soft Cell/etc. toward a sort of synth-heavy post-punk along the lines of The Scars, Tuxedomoon, Family Fodder and/or The Banshees' "Kaleidoscope" LP. The melody is beautiful, and the lyrics - full of images of monster glamour girls nightclubbing the rest of world to death - are creepy as fuck.

from Witching Hour, available on CD


Everything You Wanted  performed by My Rich Friends  2007
Recommended by moonlabmusic [profile]

I wrote it and sang it. It is a statement about technology and asks the question whether or not we actually need what we say we want.

from Dane Cook's Tourgasm soundtrack (Rhino Records 74858)


Anesthetize  performed by Porcupine Tree  2007
Recommended by puuhaentae [profile]

Basic prog-heavy-rock instrumentation backed up with synth sequencers.
A long track that kind of takes you in a trance.
Perfectly on time and well played instruments and guitar riffs together with the sequencers create a certain kind of "drive" and well constructed drums and genious drum fills keeps it interesting and alive. Steve Wilson's (not so typical for the genre) vocals bring in ghostliness and calm.

from Fear of a blank planet


Asleep At The Wheel  performed by Working For A Nuclear Free City  2007
Recommended by MisterBenn [profile]

Epic instrumental with an awesome pounding drum track. Like The Beta Band but with a heavy dose of caffeine. It moves from shoegaze intro to full on Chemical Brothers style brain-shaking drums. This soars.

from Businessmen and Ghosts


Oblivion  performed by Mastodon  2009
Recommended by Darke Soul [profile]

I've never been much impressed with Mastodon's music, but this song is fantastic. Off the new cd, "Crack The Skye." The rest of the album is decent, but Oblivion is the gem.

from Crack The Skye, available on CD


Threshold Of Transformation  performed by Isis  2009
Recommended by SamHall [profile]

The 9:52 long track immediately blasts you off your feet with a ethereally heavy series of riffs and Aaron Turner's rough vocals. Keeping it interesting, the structure continues to evolve, and drifts downward into a more dreamy movement which stays dense and builds the tension for the following verses. About halfway in, the song reaches the first climax that (I think) embodies the "Threshold" in the song title. After which, it moves into a more contemplative section, smoothing out the turmoil and tension brought on by the first half, while building its own. Beautifully, it succeeds in building yet another crescendo, only to end in free fall, with guitar and bass fantastically accenting the mood. The bass in this song is truly something to behold, wavering and powerful in its tone.

What I like about this song reflects on why I like Isis' music in general: it's complex, atmospheric, emotional, intricate, and smart. It truly is "thinking man's metal." Isis is all about themes and atmospheres, emotions and vibes, rather than clear ideas and lyrics. It's visceral, raw, and transcendent. And in some ways, I think this song embodies everything that makes them great.

from Wavering Radiant, available on CD


He’s So Real  performed by Gena Mason & the Noise  2010
Recommended by thequeen29 [profile]

Danceable stoner rock. Rock instruments (vox, gtr, bass, drums, keys)
Just has a good vibe. It's laid-back but heavy rock, got catchy melodies & a good beat.

from Exile, available on CD


Nethers (Dubstep Twilight Remix)  performed by eO - www.soundsliketree.com  2011
Recommended by phaeocstar [profile]

eO's through-composed, symphotronic poem incorporates exotic world-fusion compositions with heavy post-dubstep beats, evocative vocals, and elegant instrumentation.

from River Through an Open Door, available on CD



  Nathan1623: Just listened to it. It is pretty soothing and I enjoyed it thank you. (:

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