The Boys Next Door - Door, Door

by daswickerman on Mon, May 12, 2025

The Door to the Cave

Year 1979. The Ayatollah returned to Iran, compact discs were shown to the public for the first time, the West Indies beat England at home in the Cricket World Cup, the IRA assassinated Lord Mountbatten, and daswickerman was born – so like any year, a mix of good and bad events. In music, a number of influential singles were released which would go on to feature on albums in 1980 (Bauhaus, The Sugarhill Gang) and Michael Jackson released Off the Wall, his first solo album.

birthstopster

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Wire - Chairs Missing

by Cherd on Wed, Apr 30, 2025

Happy birthday Cherd !

To say the last three years of the 70s were an important time for rock music would be an understatement. Before the punk movement’s crescendo had even started to ebb, a group of forward-thinking bands began breaking it apart and re-arranging its components into forms with far-reaching implications for what would come to be called alternative rock, and eventually indie rock. In quick succession, ‘77, ‘78, and ‘79 saw the release of post-punk classics like Television’s Marquee Moon, Talking Heads’ 77, More Songs About Buildings and Food, and Fear of Music, Wire’s Pink Flag, Chairs Missing, and 154, and Joy Division’s Unknown Pleasures.

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Tarbeaux's Almostopster: Hammers of Misfortune - Dead Revolution

by Tarbeaux on Mon, Aug 5, 2024

We had to finish the project on a high note

As we approach the conclusion of this project, I must say it has exceeded my expectations. I am deeply grateful to everyone who contributed their time and tolerated my relentless teasing. Special thanks go to Abso for the visuals, and to Snyde, Meri, Goldi, and ferd for their proofreading. Ultimately I think we discovered some pretty interesting albums. Initially, I feared most would be worse than the ones at the bottom of the reliquary, but that wasn’t the case (with a few exceptions - I’m looking at you, Gadunka).

almostopster

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Skamz's Almostopster: Vessel of Iniquity - The Doorway

by skamz on Thu, Jul 18, 2024

skamz try to rate albums coherently challenge (impossible)

In trying to come up with my reliquary, I had to reconsider what it meant to rate an album. An album that introduced a new sound or style, that was, perhaps, monumental - how does this compare with one that was less innovative, but I actually enjoy listening to more? It can feel unfair to exclude such groundbreaking material. For example I totally dig the gorenoise of Last Days of Humanity’s Putrefaction in Progress, but is this a good “album”?

almostopster

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