2023 Album Showdowns: Tier 1, Week 3

Another week of thought-provoking showdowns.  This year’s Tier 1 brackets were generated by statistics over stylistic similarities, which in many cases resulted in unfathomable genre clashes.  Never fear, as the tiers to follow take genre into consideration!  In truth, it's fun and interesting to use these mismatches as a guide for combing through my ridiculously large Bandcamp wishlist, looking for albums that make sense as a contender for either outcome.  

Adventures of Jet - Part 3: Coping With Insignificance VS. Nordic Giants - Build Seas, Dismantle Suns

Adventures of Jet - Part 3: Coping With Insignificance

It would seem that this is another example of musical depth VS. accessibility, but Adventures of Jet (or, as they are sometimes known, Bobgoblin) are an example of a project that is able to excel in both metrics.  As great as Build Seas, Dismantle Suns is, I don’t walk around with Nordic Giant’s tunes in my head (well, maybe not all the time). 

Viewer’s Choice: Nordic Giants - Build Seas, Dismantle Suns

Sault - AIIR VS. Gunship - Dark All Day

Gunship - Dark All Day

The orchestral thread in Sault’s music is compelling from a musical standpoint and thought-provoking as a cultural statement.  I think that AIIR is a great companion piece to AIR, but Gunship’s dark, gothic, and pristinely produced gothic synthwave edges Sault out by a narrow margin.

Viewer’s Choice - Dark All Day

The Sun Ra Arkestra - Living Sky VS. Laurie Anderson - Big Science

Laurie Anderson - Big Science

This was actually a pretty tough one, because both of these projects represent an avant-garde take on an established style.  As a current-day release, however, Living Sky endeavors to recapture the experimental ethos of the past.  In contrast, Big Science was innovative at the time of its release, and remains a transfixing listen despite a couple of strident (but musically meaningful) moments.

Viewer’s Choice - Big Science

Rammstein - Sensucht VS. Pink Floyd - More

Pink Floyd - More

Although this is really the first clear step that Pink Floyd would take towards their most popular iteration, it is a problematic album when taken on its own.  Still, its high points predict some of Pink Floyd’s most characteristic work, and although I do love the beefy industrialism of Sensucht, the militaristic German language vocals wear me down by the album’s end.

Viewer’s Choice - Rammstein - Sensucht