What are the most ambitious albums you've ever heard?

[Jailblazers7]

[~primetime~]

OP didn't state groundbreaking he said ambitious. In Utero has an overall consistency in melody and overall sound that it felt almost like a concept album. Plus, it aimed to be unlike the previous album without deviating from the bands strengths.

People may recall Nevermind more because it was the star making album. Yet it held a lot pandering with radio specific tunes like Smells Like Teen Spirit and anthem songs like Lithium.

Even Kurt thought so, which is why he and the band decided to not give a shit on In Utero and do whatever they wanted.

Inside the makind of Nevermind

okay, fair enough...good insight

I was thinking of albums that broke new ground rather than "ambitious"

not even really sure what ambitious means here...in the OP he does say:

"Whether they were WAY before their time, [COLOR="Red"]completely different from the popular music at that time[/COLOR], going against what every fan and music critic expected from them, or just [COLOR="Red"]creating a new genre[/COLOR], lets see them."

to me Nevermind fits into that...

[russwest0]

okay, fair enough...good insight

I was thinking of albums that broke new ground rather than "ambitious"

not even really sure what ambitious means here...in the OP he does say:




to me Nevermind fits into that...

yeah my description may have not been the best but zen hit the nail on the head in regards to how I feel about that.

I see ambitious as being just bands completely disregarding the expectations, wants, pressures, and all of that shit and doing whatever the fukk it is they want and making timeless music.

i was going to add a description for each album (which I may edit in when I add a few more albums) but I got lazy.

for me personally I'm more of a fan of concept albums and also a huge fan when pop bands reverse the trend and make an underground sounding album

[ducktape]

pixies - surfer rosa


sonic youth - daydream nation


nirvana - in utero


patti smith - horses


pj harvey - rid of me


the smiths - the queen is dead


siouxsie and the banshees - juju


ramones - ramones


the beatles - magical mystery tour


the kinks - the kinks are the village green preservation society
g]

[NumberSix]

pixies - surfer rosa

This honestly has to be one of the most overrated albums ever. I honestly believe people just like it because of the album cover.

I get some people like the Albini production.... sorry, "recording" style, but there's a reason why anytime someone releases a single from an album he produced, they re-record it.

[DonDadda59]

Great call. Been getting into Joy Division lately.

[ducktape]

This honestly has to be one of the most overrated albums ever. I honestly believe people just like it because of the album cover.

I get some people like the Albini production.... sorry, "recording" style, but there's a reason why anytime someone releases a single from an album he produced, they re-record it.

it's experimental, catchy, has great songwriting, has great guitar-playing. it's okay if you don't like any of those things.

[hateraid]

U2 took a big risk in the early 90s and produced their best album imo. From Pitchfork:

"Achtung Baby is rightly known as one of rock's greatest reinventions because it was so complete. Sure, U2 changed their sound from chiming melodics to lurching, distorted rhythm. But they also changed their attitude, their demeanor, their look, their ideas on how to deal with celebrity."

My top 5 favorite albums of all time

I'd like to add to the list Travelling Wilburys Vol.1

[NumberSix]

it's experimental, catchy, has great songwriting, has great guitar-playing. it's okay if you don't like any of those things.

Yes, I'm generally don't like "great songwriting". That's it.

[ducktape]

Yes, I'm generally don't like "great songwriting". That's it.

In a 1988 interview, Frank Black gave this explanation of his songwriting process:

"Eighty percent of it's baloney, yeah... I write the songs by singing a whole bunch of syllables along with the chord progressions, and they become words. A bunch of five words might mean something, or stand for something. But the five words after it, or preceding it, sure as hell won't have anything to do with them."

It seems that the point of Pixies lyrics is not to get at specific meanings or themes, or even to follow a steady structure. For example, even though Black talks about singing "syllables along with the chord progressions," those syllables don't usually end up matching from verse to verse. Take how the second line of the first verse, "try this trick and spin it, yeah," is only seven syllables, while the second line of the second verse, "animals were hiding behind the rock," is ten. The two lines have almost the same melody, but are still structurally unique. This affects how they are sung, and contributes to the idiosyncratic vocal style Black is known for.

We here at Shmoop like some ambiguity in works of literature and music, but sometimes a work doesn

[T_L_P]

I actually think White Light, White Heat was more ambitious than Nico.

Some others:







Only rap albums I would consider being part of this group are:

[RedBlackAttack]

Nice lists so far.

A few that came to mind...





Miles Davis - Kind of Blue (Full Album)






Miles Davis - Bitches Brew (Full Album)






Can't Find the full "Blues" album on Youtube, but here's how it starts. Innovative guitar work all over this album.






Nick Drake - Pink Moon (Full Album)






Wu Tang Clan - 36 Chambers (Full Album)






Tool - Aenema (Full Album)

[NumberSix]

Not really an album.

[christian1923]

The Marathon - Nipsey Hussle

Street Lottery - Young Scooter

[FKAri]

The most ambitious albums that I can think of are ones that collapsed under their own weight and pretension.

Some of the more successful ones:

Velvet Underground & Nico
Tommy
Purple Rain
Ziggy Stardust
Dark Side of the Moon
etc.