Tell us about your favourite band/artist

[zero000]

Name:

Smashing Pumpkins

Best Song:

Thru The Eyes Of Ruby - A really tough one to choose, but at this point in time it's probably my favourite. A sprawling 7 minute track full of build ups and come downs, soaring guitars, and dreamy interludes. An absolute belter from MCIS which encapsulates a band at the height of their creative powers.

Best Album:

Siamese Dream - A lot of people may disagree with this and say that MCIS is their greatest work but for me Siamese Dream is the most consistent record the pumpkins ever produced. From the big rock singles of Cherub Rock, Today and Disarm to the weird Silverfuck, the brutal Geek U.S.A and the one-two sucker punch of Mayonnaise and Soma, Siamese Dream never fails to deliver. It is in my opinion one of the classic albums of the 90's loaded with great riffs and melodies if containing some slightly suspect lyrics.

Worst Song:

G.L.O.W - Recorded after Zeitgeist this represented a new low for the pumpkins. Generic rock riffs and a godawful baseline combine with parody worthy lyrics to result in one of the worst tracks ever recorded. Avoid at all costs.

Worst Album:

Zeitgeist - The comeback album for the reunion tour in 2007, some decent tracks but a whole lot of dung on there too. Overall Zeitgeist is a mediocre 5/10 effort, hampered by abhorrent production (who needs 50 Billy Corgan's on backing vocals!?) and embarrassing pseudo-political posturing. Having said all that Tarantula is a cracking track which is worth checking out if only for the video where Billy shoots lasers out of his eyes .

Live Favorite:

(Apologies for the shitty quality)

[Spindles]

Not quite so in depth, but mine is:

R.E.M

Best Album:

Green. It came out the summer I was 18, the summer of acid house and the vague taste of revolution in the air and I spent many baking hot afternoons walking with this album on my headphones. The soundtrack to the best summer of my life. It is really only the association that separates it for me, as I think all their albums in the 20h century were great.

Worst album:

Reveal, I think. There was some definite ropeyness in their later albums, so it's hard to pick one that made the least impression. They all had a good song or 3, but never hit the heights of their early work.

Best song:

The wrong child. It spoke to me when I was young, the production is amazing and those long, piercing notes just cut deep.

Live favourite:

Walk unafraid. What had been a fairly unremarkable album track on the last really good album they made (in my opinion, I should state), Up was turned into something so much more stood on the pyramid hill in '99

[WS_Jack_III]

Great thread, I'm gonna do mine soon.

[eonerf]

Name:

Nas

Best Song:

Nas Is Like - Amazing work from DJ Premier. One of the most innovative hip-hop beats with the birds chirping etc. but still incredibly catchy. Possibly not Nas' best song lyrically but still a ton of memorable lines and rhymes

Best Album:

Illmatic - Unique hip hop album in the sense its very upbeat, lacks a lot of swearing and has accesible songs without having to be too poppy or hardcore unlike a lot of hip hop albums. Nas also made it when he was 20!

Worst Song:

You Owe Me - One of his most popular mainstream songs but doesn't represent Nas well with all the materialism and misogyny present that he's spent most of his later career trying to avoid.

Worst Album:

Nastradamus - Some good songs like Project Windows but Nas' big descent into commericalism for this album makes the album a very disappointing listen.

Live Favourite:

Purple - One time deal at the O2 Arena but what a beauty

[mrtourette]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nirvana_%28band%29

[grumpyhack]

Two (just to be greedy.)

Danny Bryant superb talented British Blues artist. A protege of Walter Trout but also writes a lot of his own material.

That said this is my favourite song he performs. Water Trout's arrangement of Bob Dylan's Girl From the North Country. Really sensitive guitar playing.

Show of Hands best British roots band by far. Two guys Steve Knightly (main songwriter and singer) and Phil Beer - one of Britain's finest multi instrumentalists. Often supported by the lovely Miranda Sykes on bass.

Some revivals but mainly songs by Steve,

Favourite song Arrogance, Ignorance and Greed written attacking greedy bankers.

Edited January 31, 2014 by grumpyhack

[Yoghurt on a Stick]

[WS_Jack_III]

Band:

The White Stripes

Best Song:

This changes often for me but right now,

The Hardest Button to Button - The song that cemented the fact that I liked this band, I get excited every time I hear it. Always great live too.

Best Album:

Elephant - I never skip a track on this album, flawless from beginning to end. Probably their most recognised album due to the song Seven Nation Army. Other notable songs include; The Hardest Button to Button, Ball and Biscuit, Little Acorns and I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself. Most of the songs from this albums were played on the road, with Seven Nation Army becoming a set closer for the band and Jack White's solo tour.

Least Favourite Song:

Their cover of One More Cup Of Coffee would take it but I think their own material should win over a cover, that's why White Moon takes the prize. A piano lead track off of their Get Behind Me Satan record, it was probably skipped a lot by myself. It features at the end of documentary Under Great White Northern Lights, as Jack and Meg are filmed after their tour of Canada has ended, the song turns Meg to tears and my be a brief insight into her feelings about leaving the band. Not a terrible song, just one I don't listen to all that often.

Least Favourite Album:

Get Behind Me Satan - I like the album but it slightly Piano heavy compared to the all out garage rock efforts of their earlier work, which isn't a bad thing it just means i've got to be in a certain mood to sit and listen to the whole thing through.

This video shows you just how good they were!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GnBZ3MKhdOk&feature=youtube_gdata_player

[Uncle Liam]

Band: Interpol

Song: Evil. Has been since I first heard it 9 1/2 years ago now.

Album: Antics. I get slated for this, and I love the first one, and the other two have their highlights as well, but take Length of Love of Antics and you have near perfection. Evil, Narc, Take You on a Cruise, Slow Hands, C'Mere...

Least favourite song: Length of Love. Length of boredom more like. And it got played nearly every gig last tour

Least favourite album: The last one purely because I didn't see as many shows as on the OLTA tour. Still, it has Success, Barricade, Summer Well, Lights... so a pretty good album!

Gig: Zurich Volkhaus, Munich Tonallle, Berlin Columbiahall all November 2007, Sheffield Academy July 2008, Liverpool Uni December 2010, Cambridge Corn Exchange March 2011, Electric Picnic August 2011.

Least favourite gig: Leeds Fest 2011 was pretty desperate. Jetting up to Newcastle in August 2007 was pretty bad as well when it got pulled because Carlos was othe.... taken ill just before the gig.

[big joe]

Artist: Oasis

Best Song:

Despite being a hardest of hardcore fans i have never had a clear favourite song or album as i'm enthralled by almost everything they ever did. I'll have a bash though. Hmmm. Columbia is an absolutely immense tune and the song, outside of the hits, that i return to the most. Half The World Away has grown in stature over the years, as have most of the Noel sung tunes. But i'm going to plump for Don't Look Back In Anger. First of all, it is one of those undeniable, unimpeachable classics, regardless of personal preference. It's place in the pantheon is secure and the effect it has on me only increases with every listen. For me, it is bulletproof from endless plays - unlike Wonderwall - and is one of the great live songs too.

Worst Song:

Blimey, i like all their stuff. 'Alive', B-side of Shakermaker is clearly the weakest tune they have ever released. Of the rest, 'I Can See A Liar' and 'Put Yer Money Where Yer Mouth Is', both from Standing On The Shoulder Of Giants, are flat out duffers. 'Ain't Got Nuthin' from Dig Out Your Soul isn't up to much either.

Best Album:

It would be pointless to suggest it's anything other than Definitely Maybe or Morning Glory. I honestly don't have a preference one way or the other. Today i'll plump for Morning Glory as it's the first album i ever bought. That's right, i wasn't there from the beginning. Sue me.

Worst Album:

Standing On The Shoulder Of Giants, easily. The only album where i can hear boredom and a lack of ideas. Still, even when the creative well was dry Noel gave us Fuckin In The Bushes, Go Let It Out and Gas Panic!

Best Gig:

Finsbury Park 2002. My favourite gig ever. Dreadful, torrential rain leading up to them appearing on stage and this was the weekend that the revolting piss throwing started becoming a serious problem at their concerts. However..... the atmosphere was absolutely unbelievable. I've never felt so energised at a concert.

Worst Gig:

Glastonbury 2004. I was stood just behind and to the right of the mixing desk and the sound was dreadful, the worst i've ever witnessed for a headliner. Add to that their complete disinterest in engaging the audience and seemingly endless tune ups between songs and it was pretty grim. The only time they have disappointed me live. Shame.

Edited February 3, 2014 by big joe

[bunique]

Brand New

(obviously )

Best Song: Have been pondering this since the thread was started. It's probably 'Okay I Believe You, But My Tommy Gun Don't' for me most days, and Jesus the rest of the time. The bridge in both songs gives me butterflies every single time I listen to them.

Worst song: A couple of tracks on the debut Your Favorite Weapon are a little weak, but probably Be Gone or Bed off fourth album Daisy is my most skipped track.

Album: Although Deja Entendu is the album that first hooked me, the third album, The Devil and God Are Raging Inside Me, is practically perfection.

I've seen them every tour since 2005 or 2006 I think (which, given they only come over every couple of years isn't all that many, but still!) and have yet to be disappointed. The mood of the band can be very variable but sonically they're always on form.