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Mysterious Dude
09-13-2009, 03:45 AM
I'm trying to make a list of my favorite songs. Right now, the 1980's are somewhat underrepresented.

With pop music from the 80's, I generally feel that a song either sounds too electronic or synthesized (even when it's not), or the percussion completely dominates everything. Then you've got your heavy metal, which I don't much care for at all. Basically, it seems like everything good about music was just exaggerated in the 80's until it became unpleasant. I apologize for lacking the vocabulary to describe what I'm talking about very well, but I hope you see what I'm trying to say.

I've listened to the big guys, and they either don't do much for me (Michael Jackson, Madonna, Prince, Bruce Springsteen, Duran Duran, Joy Division, Motley Crue) or I outright dislike them (Van Halen, Guns N' Roses, Journey). Is there any more independent music that I'm missing?

I like one song by the Pixies.

Milky Joe
09-13-2009, 04:36 AM
Tom Waits' 80s output is astounding.

Daniel Johnston. The Pogues.

The Smiths. Talking Heads.

Dead & Messed Up
09-13-2009, 04:45 AM
I'm trying to make a list of my favorite songs. Right now, the 1980's are somewhat underrepresented.

With pop music from the 80's, I generally feel that a song either sounds too electronic or synthesized (even when it's not), or the percussion completely dominates everything. Then you've got your heavy metal, which I don't much care for at all. Basically, it seems like everything good about music was just exaggerated in the 80's until it became unpleasant. I apologize for lacking the vocabulary to describe what I'm talking about very well, but I hope you see what I'm trying to say.

I've listened to the big guys, and they either don't do much for me (Michael Jackson, Madonna, Prince, Bruce Springsteen, Duran Duran, Joy Division, Motley Crue) or I outright dislike them (Van Halen, Guns N' Roses, Journey). Is there any more independent music that I'm missing?

I like one song by the Pixies.

Hrm. The ones I own are:

The Beastie Boys' Licensed to Ill
The Beastie Boys' Paul's Boutique
Bob Marley's The Uprising
The Cure's Greatest Hits
Depeche Mode's Music for the Masses
Depeche Mode's Violator
Nine Inch Nails' Pretty Hate Machine
U2's The Joshua Tree

Of those, your best chances are probably with Violator and Paul's Boutique. The former is synth-y, but it really builds an atmosphere out of its keyboards. Much less poppy than their early stuff. Try "Blue Dress" (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Mh6hK8mEIw). The latter is sample-licious, a groundbreaking album that's just as awesome today. Try "Egg Man" (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ejz--hN9Q2o).

ledfloyd
09-13-2009, 04:57 AM
talking heads and tom waits are your best bet.

Acapelli
09-13-2009, 05:36 AM
The Smiths. Talking Heads.
New Order
The Cars
Gang of Four
The Jesus and Mary Chain
Cocteau Twins
The Go-Go's

Derek
09-13-2009, 07:32 PM
My favorite albums of the 80s...

47. Cocteau Twins - Head Over Heels (1986)
46. OMD - Organisation
45. Minutemen - Double Nickels on the Dime (1984)
44. The Psychedelic Furs - The Psychedelic Furs (1980)
43. The Stone Roses - The Stone Roses (1989)
42. Tom Waits - Rain Dogs (1985)
41. Violent Femmes - Violent Femmes (1983)
40. Pixies - Doolittle (1989)
39. The Cure - Disintegration (1989)
38. My Bloody Valentine - Isn't Anything (1988)
37. Sonic Youth - Daydream Nation (1988)
36. Arvo Pärt - Tabula Rasa (1984)
35. Pixies - Surfer Rosa (1988)
34. Talk Talk - The Colour of Spring (1986)
33. Paul Simon - Graceland (1986)
32. New Order - Low-Life (1985)
31. Chrome - 3rd From the Sun (1982)
30. OMD - Dazzle Ships
29. The Police - Synchronicity (1983)
28. The Jesus and Mary Chain - Psychocandy (1985)
27. Kraftwerk - Computer World (1981)
26. Tall Dwarfs - Hello Cruel World (1986)
25. U2 - War (1983)
24. Joy Division - Closer (1980)
23. This Heat - Deceit (1981)
22. Nine Inch Nails - Pretty Hate Machine (1989)
21. Mission of Burma - Signals, Calls and Marches (1981) [EP]
20. My Bloody Valentine - You Made Me Realise (1988) [EP]
19. DNA - DNA on DNA (2004) [Compilation]
18. New Order - Power, Corruption & Lies (1983)
17. Galaxie 500 - Today (1988)
16. OMD - Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark
15. Cocteau Twins - Treasure (1986)
14. Glenn Branca - The Ascension (1981)
13. The Feelies - Crazy Rhythms (1980)
12. The Chameleons - What Does Anything Mean? Basically (1985)
11. U2 - The Joshua Tree (1987)
10. Spacemen 3 - The Perfect Prescription (1987)
9. OMD - Architecture & Morality (1981)
8. The Chameleons - Script of the Bridge (1986)
7. Talking Heads - Remain in Light (1980)
6. Penguin Cafe Orchestra - Penguin Cafe Orchestra (1981)
5. Galaxie 500 - On Fire (1989)
4. The Chameleons - Strange Times (1986)
3. Young Marble Giants - Colossal Youth (1980)
2. Talk Talk - Spirit of Eden (1988)
1. Talking Heads - The Name of This Band Is Talking Heads (1982) [3-disk extended edition]

ledfloyd
09-13-2009, 08:17 PM
i love tabula rasa.

Duncan
09-13-2009, 10:23 PM
Violent Femmes, s/t.

And Tom Waits' Rain Dogs might be my favourite album ever.

Boner M
09-13-2009, 11:09 PM
WIPERS (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Yq9ng9oaKo)

Derek
09-14-2009, 12:29 AM
WIPERS (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Yq9ng9oaKo)

Seconded. Need to add them to my list.

MadMan
09-14-2009, 06:01 AM
When I think about it, I love the 80s more than I previously thought. Some of my favorite bands are from that decade, and I can actually settle on what my favorite song of the 80s is, as well (for the record that would be "I Ran" by Flock of Seagulls).

Ivan Drago
09-14-2009, 04:12 PM
Some of my favorite songs from the 80s:

Bizarre Love Triangle - New Order
Take on Me - A-Ha
Beg Your Pardon (Never Promised a Rose Garden) - Kon Kan
Sowing The Seeds of Love - Tears For Fears
Head Over Heels - Tears For Fears
(enter song title here) - ELO
You Spin Me 'Round (Like A Record) - Dead or Alive
Don't You Want Me - Human League
Every Breath You Take - The Police (at least I think this is 80s)
Whip It - Devo
The Promise - When In Rome
I Ran (So Far Away) - A Flock of Seagulls
80s Queen
Where The Streets Have No Name - U2
I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For - U2
Everybody Wants To Rule The World - Tears For Fears
Metal Health - Quiet Riot
Baby I'm A Star - Prince
Hungry Like The Wolf - Duran Duran
Ordinary World - Duran Duran
Obsession - Animotion
Cars - Gary Numan
Bark At The Moon - Ozzy Osbourne
The End of the Innocence - Don Henley
Boys of Summer - Don Henley
Dancing With Myself - Billy Idol
One - Metallica
Need You Tonight/Mediate - INXS
Yankee Rose - David Lee Roth
Dreams - Van Halen
One Night in Bangkok - Murray Head
Eruption - Van Halen
Don't You Forget About Me - Simple Minds
Panama - Van Halen

And of course, Billie Jean, Beat It, and Thriller by Michael Jackson.

EDIT: Um, crap. You've probably heard everything on this list then.

Dukefrukem
09-14-2009, 06:28 PM
How do you dislike Guns N Roses?

Spaceman Spiff
09-14-2009, 07:21 PM
The 80s are great, but unlike the 60s and 70s you really have to dig kind of deep to find the good stuff.

Derek's list is an excellent one.

Russ
09-14-2009, 10:25 PM
Antoine,

Some more great 80's bands to seek out:

Polyrock
Pylon
Au Pairs
Magazine
Hunters & Collectors
The Bats
Jacobites
The Fall
The Associates
Bill Nelson
That Petrol Emotion
Eyeless in Gaza

You can sample all of the above and many from Derek's excellent listing off these compilations:

80's Retrospective Vol. 1 (http://www.mediafire.com/?1kwqbgnnqdj)

80's Retrospective Vo. 2 (http://www.mediafire.com/?lomwzwjucym)

In addition to those, I'd also highly recommend the following:

The Soft Boys (Underwater Moonlight, Invisible Hits) or Robyn Hitchcock in general.
David Byrne - The Catherine Wheel
David Byrne / Brian Eno - My Life in the Bush of Ghosts
The Method Actors (I contributed their song, Halloween to Matchcut's Halloween CD comp)
John Foxx - Metamatic
Brian Eno -Apollo
P.I.L. Metal Box
Rain Parade - Third Rail Emergency Power Trip
Rainy Day (various Paisley Undergound artists)
Opal - Early Recordings, Vol. 1

The above two are pre-Mazzy Star David Roback recordings, featuring Kendra Smith, are quite rare and highly, highly recommended if you can find them (and if you search online, you probably can) [to Derek: you really need to get a copy of that Opal recording]

And, if you're in an especially adventurous mood, be sure and grab the 1980 classic, The Commercial Album, by The Residents

Happy listening.

Scar
09-15-2009, 12:32 AM
You're missing out on some awesome old school Metallica, particularly this album:

http://battlenerds.files.wordpress.co m/2008/12/master-of-puppets.jpg

Mysterious Dude
09-15-2009, 12:34 AM
How do you dislike Guns N Roses?

I don't like Axl Rose's voice.

And at the risk of alienating everyone... I'm not crazy about Talking Heads, either.

... Thanks for the recs, everyone. I need all the help I can get.

Scar
09-15-2009, 12:40 AM
Recommended old school Metallica tracks to start with:

Ride The Lightning
Fade to Black
The Call of Cthulu

Master of Puppets
Master of Puppets
Welcome Home (Sanitarium)

....And Justice For All
One
Harvester of Sorrow

If you only want to check two out, check out Fade to Black and One.

Acapelli
09-15-2009, 01:16 AM
I don't like Axl Rose's voice.
glad i'm not the only one

was listening to sweet child o mine on the radio and it was like nails on a chalkboard

Justin
09-15-2009, 03:27 AM
New Order's Power, Corruption, and Lies is a great album, listen to that. I don't see how anyone cannot love the tracks Age of Consent and Your Silent Face. But nobody has mentioned Faith No More's The Real Thing and Eric B. and Rakim's Paid in Full.

Derek
09-15-2009, 03:29 AM
Antoine,

Some more great 80's bands to seek out:

Pylon
Magazine
The Fall
David Byrne / Brian Eno - My Life in the Bush of Ghosts

[to Derek: you really need to get a copy of that Opal recording]


I second these. I've only heard Magazine's '79 album, Real Life, which is awesome. Are their other albums worth checking out?

The Fall's Slates and Hex Conduction Hour along with the Byrne/Eno album should've been on my list, but I've been lazy about updating those recently.

I'm on top of the Opal recording.

Boner M
09-15-2009, 03:38 AM
I haven't heard Opal yet, but the first two Dream Syndicate albums would make a good addition to this thread.

Spaceman Spiff
09-15-2009, 03:58 AM
And at the risk of alienating everyone... I'm not crazy about Talking Heads, either

I'd suggest giving them another go. I once thought similarly, and they do take a bit of getting used to, but once you 'get it', it all clicks. I think their afrofunk work (especially Remain in Light) is much better than their poppier early stuff, if that's of any idea.

Justin
09-15-2009, 04:03 AM
I'd suggest giving them another go. I once thought similarly, and they do take a bit of getting used to, but once you 'get it', it all clicks. I think their afrofunk work (especially Remain in Light) is much better than their poppier early stuff, if that's of any idea.

I was never a big fan of Talking Heads until I heard Love -> Building on Fire, that song is fantastic. But alas, that song is 70's.

Russ
09-15-2009, 12:05 PM
I second these. I've only heard Magazine's '79 album, Real Life, which is awesome. Are their other albums worth checking out?
Be sure and get Secondhand Daylight, which contains the stunning song, Permafrost. Lyric sample:

"As the day stops dead
at the place where we're lost
I will drug you and fuck you
on the permafrost'



I'm on top of the Opal recording.
Long out-of-print, but its status is legendary.

Go here to download: Opal - Early Recordings Vol. 1 (http://ascausasperdidas.blogspot.com/2007/05/opal-early-recordings-1989.html)

Here's a YouTube video of Opal's Fell From the Sun:

Opal (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sU7Cb-PUTuo)

And a video of Dylan's I'll Keep It With Mine, from the Rainy Day compilation (60's covers) featuring the Bangles' Susanna Hoffs:

Rainy Day (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q8F-1Zq7FQY)

Boner M
09-15-2009, 12:47 PM
I'm not a big fan of Secondhand Daylight, but I haven't given it a fair shake... Real Life or the Complete Peel Sessions CD are the ones I go for when I want my Magazine kick.

I hear good things about The Correct Use of Soap, though I inexplicably haven't heard it yet; Because You're Frightened (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vcTMtVPvROs) is one of my favorite songs of the 80's.

Adam
09-18-2009, 07:32 PM
Yeah, people have touched on what are probably your best bets. Talking Heads is far and away my stone-cold favorite band and Robyn Hitchcock is a personal hero. But for some deeper cuts and a gateway to some really cool music, I strongly recommend this compilation called Left of the Dial: Dispatches from the '80s Underground (http://www.amazon.com/Left-Dial-Dispatches-80s-Underground/dp/B0002XL2X4). It's just dynamite stuff and it's an especially great soundtrack for a long roadtrip. Here's the tracklist

R.E.M. - "Radio Free Europe"
The Jam - "Going Underground"
The Cure - "A Forest"
Dead Kennedys - "Holiday in Cambodia"
The Passions - "I'm in Love With a German Film Star"
The Replacements - "I Will Dare"
Mission of Burma - "That's When I Reach For My Revolver"
X - "Johnny Hit and Run Paulene"
The Jesus and Mary Chain - "Just Like Honey"
Depeche Mode - "Black Celebration"
Dream Syndicate - "Tell Me When It's Over"
Red Hot Chili Peppers - "Hollywood (Africa)"
New Order - "Temptation"
Japan - "Ghosts"
Magazine - "A Song From Under the Floorboards"
Aztec Camera - "Oblivious"
Hüsker Dü - "Don't Want to Know If You Are Lonely"
Black Flag - "Rise Above"
Wall of Voodoo - "Back in Flesh"
The Go-Betweens - "Cattle and Cane"

The Pretenders - "Message of Love"
Ultravox - "Vienna"
Dinosaur Jr. - "Freak Scene"
The Smiths - "This Charming Man"
Ministry - "Stigmata"
Lone Justice - "Ways to Be Wicked"
Killing Joke - "Wardance"
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark - "Enola Gay"
The English Beat - "Mirror in the Bathroom"
The Raincoats - "Fairytale in the Supermarket"
The Smithereens - "Behind the Wall of Sleep"
Minutemen - "Political Song for Michael Jackson to Sing"
Dead Milkmen - "Punk Rock Girl"
Concrete Blonde - "Still In Hollywood"
Joy Division - "Love Will Tear Us Apart"
Violent Femmes - "Blister in the Sun"
Meat Puppets - "Lake of Fire"
The DB's - "Amplifier"
Prefab Sprout - "When Love Breaks Down"
The Cramps - "Goo Goo Muck"
The Sisters of Mercy - "This Corrosion"
XTC - "Senses Working Overtime"

Echo & the Bunnymen - "The Cutter"
Bad Brains - "Pay to Cum!"
The Sugarcubes - "Birthday"
Robyn Hitchcock & The Egyptians - "Madonna of the Wasps"
Faith No More - "We Care a Lot"
Sonic Youth - "Teen Age Riot"
Gang of Four - "To Hell With Poverty"
The Feelies - "Fa Cé-La"
They Might Be Giants - "Ana Ng"
The Chameleons UK - "Swamp Thing"
Nick Cave - "The Mercy Seat"
Rain Parade - "I Look Around"
Psychedelic Furs - "All That Money Wants"
The Church - "Under the Milky Way"
Public Image Ltd. - "Rise"
Love and Rockets - "Kundalini Express"
Green on Red - "Gravity Talks"
Throbbing Gristle - "Adrenalin"
The Stone Roses - "She Bangs the Drums"

Pixies - "Monkey Gone to Heaven"
The The - "Uncertain Smile"
Bauhaus - "Bela Lugosi's Dead"
Siouxsie & the Banshees - "Christine"
Minor Threat - "Straight Edge"
Lyres - "I Want to Help You Ann"
Beat Happening - "Our Secret"
Jane's Addiction - "Jane Says"
Julian Cope - "World Shut Your Mouth"
Kate Bush - "Running Up That Hill"
The Gun Club - "Sex Beat"
Camper Van Beethoven - "Take the Skinheads Bowling"
Suicidal Tendencies - "Institutionalized"
Cocteau Twins - "Pearly-Dewdrops' Drops"
Happy Mondays - "24 Hour Party People"
Hoodoo Gurus - "I Want You Back"
Descendents - "Surburban Home"
The Pogues - "A Pair of Brown Eyes"
The Three O'Clock - "Jet Fighter"
Butthole Surfers - "Moving to Florida"
Billy Bragg - "A New England"

Our Aurora
09-27-2009, 12:01 AM
Um, Elvis Costello?

He released 9 albums in the 80's. Including: Trust, Imperial Bedroom, Blood & Chocolate and King of America.

megladon8
09-28-2009, 05:18 AM
I would recommend Hall & Oates, one of my favorite acts of all time, but I have a feeling it's exactly what you don't want.

So, nevermind.

Acapelli
09-28-2009, 07:20 AM
I would recommend Hall & Oates, one of my favorite acts of all time, but I have a feeling it's exactly what you don't want.

So, nevermind.
i was gonna mentione them, but then i realized i'm a much bigger fan of their 70s output than their 80s stuff. they still had a lot of great singles in the 80s though

Skitch
09-28-2009, 11:50 AM
Violent Femmes, The Cure, Metallica...theres some good stuff out there, but not much.

Fezzik
09-28-2009, 01:58 PM
You're missing out on some awesome old school Metallica, particularly this album:

http://battlenerds.files.wordpress.co m/2008/12/master-of-puppets.jpg

I was listening to some of the stuff off this album last week and it reminded me how far they've fallen. It's sad.

monolith94
09-29-2009, 01:01 PM
I really like the band "In a Big Country"

ledfloyd
11-09-2009, 10:52 PM
i'm just getting into Galaxie 500. on fire is a great 80s album.

bac0n
11-10-2009, 05:54 PM
Has The Church been mentioned yet in this thread? Their album Starfish was one of the better albums to come out that decade.

BuffaloWilder
11-12-2009, 12:25 AM
I don't have time for anyone who doesn't enjoy Prince's eighties output.

I say GOOD DAY to you, sir.

Spun Lepton
11-14-2009, 07:58 PM
Count this Minnesotan as somebody who strongly dislikes The Bruise. I briefly knew somebody who worked at his vanity magazine Uptown, and was fired by Prince when he called it, "the magazine," instead of "your magazine."

MacGuffin
08-07-2010, 07:53 PM
Sorry, I wasn't around for this thread, but I just wanted to say it is awesome.

D_Davis
08-10-2010, 11:20 PM
Some albums I love from the '80s

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/6/63/King_Crimson_Discipline.jpg

http://www.slicingupeyeballs.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/1218049195_the-cure-disintegration.jpg

http://idolator.com/assets/resources/2008/09/DeLaSoul3FeetHighandRisingalbu mcover.jpg

http://17seconds.co.uk/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/public-enemy-nation1.jpg

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_T6EHdNd9u-U/SgC0vLjAt2I/AAAAAAAABOI/czFBg-SEk9k/s320/album-key-lime-pie.jpg

http://images.uulyrics.com/cover/c/camper-van-beethoven/album-telephone-free-landslide-victory.jpg

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/a/ac/OhMercy.jpg

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/9/97/Dla1.jpg

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/f/f1/Japan-tindrum.jpg

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/b/b7/Duran1st.jpg

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/6/65/Budd_%26_Eno%27s_The_Pearl.jpg

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/d/db/Treasure_cover.jpg

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_vy4z0ulpRK4/SYqF2ErbSHI/AAAAAAAAB48/tcXJm1qzt1A/s400/R-383702-1154529757.jpg



And tons more.


Have you listened to any of the albums people have recommended in the thread yet?

Acapelli
08-14-2010, 06:58 PM
Count this Minnesotan as somebody who strongly dislikes The Bruise. I briefly knew somebody who worked at his vanity magazine Uptown, and was fired by Prince when he called it, "the magazine," instead of "your magazine."
how does that affect your enjoyment of his music?

so what, he's a douche, doesn't make his music less awesome

Mr. Pink
10-14-2010, 11:45 AM
Lots of good stuff mentioned here.

Level 42 deserves a recommend, if only for "Something About You."

But, yeah, Talking Heads, Depeche Mode, The Cure, New Order; hard to go wrong with any of them. Special shout-out to Level 42 and Howard Jones. Yes, I love Howard Jones.