Vinyl Verdict

On this episode of Vinyl Verdict, Bell, Jamie and Plouffe, listen to Jamie's next pick, Death From Above 1979's - You're a Woman, I'm a Machine. Released in 2004, the album was recorded by the Canadian duo of Jesse F. Keeler on bass and Sebastien Grainger on drums and vocals. Genre-wise, this album was described as 'dance-punk', a genre combining the sound of post-punk, with a beat you could dance to if you wanted to. Despite being relatively unknown outside of Canada, Death From Above 1979 has collaborated with artists such as Bloc Party and Jack White. What will the boys think? Come along and find out!

On this episode of Vinyl Verdict, Bell, Jamie and Plouffe, listen to Bell's next pick, Nick Hakim's WILL THIS MAKE ME GOOD. Released in 2020, it is his second studio album. The album touches upon issues such as climate change, the use of medication in children and the loss of friends. Hakim judiciously layers different sounds throughout the album, often as if the album is in multiple genres at the same time. Critically, the album received better than average reviews, with some reviews praising its production and songwriting, while others criticized the somewhat uneven tone and the length. How will the boys receive this album? Come along and find out!

On this special episode of Vinyl Verdict, Plouffe, Bell and Jamie discuss albums released in their birth year. Up first is Bell's pick, Nas' Illmatic from 1994. His debut album, it was released to universal acclaim among critics, and has been hailed as a landmark in hip hop. Next, is Plouffe's pick, The Traveling Wilburys' The Traveling Wilburys Vol. 3, from 1990. A supergroup featuring the likes of Tom Petty, Jeff Lynne, Bob Dylan, George Harrison and prior to his death in 1988,Roy Orbison, the Traveling Wilburys released two albums. The good one is the one with Roy Orbison on it. Finally, Jamie's pick is Public Enemy's It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back, from 1988. Wildly acclaimed as a significant album in hip hop, Rolling Stone has named it variously the #48 and #15 of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. What will the boys discover about albums from their birth years? Come along and find out!

On this episode of Vinyl Verdict, Bell, Jamie and Plouffe, listen to Plouffe's next pick, System of a Down's Toxicity. Released in 2001, Toxicity was their breakthrough album and contained four successful singles. The album that spans both the nu-metal and alternative metal genres, and also contains elements of jazz, folk, Armenian and Greek music. Two singles from the album - Aerials and Chop Suey! - were nominated for the Grammy award for Best Hard Rock and Best Metal Performance, respectively. Critical reviews for the album were positive, with a few outlier reviews declaring the album to be unlistenable and a mess. Toxicity remains their most successful album, with over 12,000,000 albums sold worldwide. Will this album be critically praised by the boys? Come along and find out!

Plouffe mentions a live performance of Psycho in the episode, it can be found here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0DPRpl8kx9c

On this episode of Vinyl Verdict, Bell, Jamie and Plouffe, listen to Jamie's next pick, Pink Floyd's Wish You Were Here. Released in 1975, Wish You Were Here was the follow up album to 1973's Dark Side of the Moon, the band's big breakout album. While less commercially successful than Dark Side of the Moon, the album has been warmly received retrospectively, having been named both the #4 progressive rock album and variously the 209th, 211th and 264th greatest album of all time by Rolling Stone. Bookended by the mammoth tracks Shine On You Crazy Diamond, the album serves as both a criticism of the music industry and a lamentation for prior Pink Floyd member, Syd Barrett. Barrett had been the original guitarist for the band prior to his departure in 1968, amidst a severe decline in his mental health. Like the previously covered The Mollusk, the album art was done by Storm Thorgerson and his design studio Hipgnosis. Is this another album that Bell will inexplicably like? Will the boys be swallowed up by the Machine? Come along and find out!

On this episode of Vinyl Verdict, Bell, Jamie and Plouffe, listen to Bell's next pick, The Barenaked Ladies' Gordon. Their debut album, Gordon was produced after the band won a contest with a $100,000 prize at the Toronto radio station, CFNY. Gordon was released in 1992 and sold 80,000 copies in its first 24 hours of release, and then proceeded to chart in Canada for 8 consecutive weeks. Consisting of 14 tracks - 6 of which had appeared in forms on their previous demo tapes, reviewers described the album variously as 'whimsical', 'hyperactive' and 'brooding' all at the same time. Steven Page, the lead singer on most of the album, bemoaned in many interviews that the album was probably the most bootlegged album of all time, with the number of fans who know every word on the album outnumbering actual sales four to one. What would the boys do if they had $1000000? Does Plouffe's fridge have Dijon ketchup in it? Come along and find out!

On this episode of Vinyl Verdict, Bell, Jamie and Plouffe, are joined by Luke Lafreniere to talk about his pick, Tiger Army's self titled debut album. Released in 1999, Tiger Army comes in at a brisk 32 minutes, 33 if you round up. At the time of recording, the only actual member of Tiger Army was Nick 13, the alias of Kearney Nick Jones, the only constant member of the band through its 27 year existence. Nick 13 was joined in the studio by Rob Peltier on bass (originally from the band The Quakes) and Adam Carson on drums (originally from the band AFI). An album in the Psychobilly genre, the album also explores themes from the Horror Punk and plain old Punk genres. Critical reviews at the time said that the album had clear reverence for the sound of early rock and roll and also praised the often humourous writing of the lyrics. Will Luke and the boys find this album to be a lyrical riot, or will they outlaw it from their playlists? Come along and find out!

On this episode of Vinyl Verdict, Bell, Jamie and Plouffe, listen to Plouffe's next pick, DANGERDOOM's The Mouse and the Mask. Released in 2005, this was the only full length album released by the duo of producer Danger Mouse and rapper MF DOOM. Consisting of fourteen tracks that are interspersed with clips from Adult Swim shows such as Perfect Hair Forever, Aqua Teen Hunger Force, Harvey Birdman: Attorney At Law and Space Ghost: Coast to Coast, the album stands as a tribute to a particular period of time in cartoon history. MF Doom is joined by some of the characters from these shows on several tracks, as well as guest rappers Ghostface Killah and Talib Kweli. The album was well received by critics who admired its production value, the incorporation of the Adult Swim characters and the lyrics. Spin placed it at number 25 on their list of the 40 best albums of 2005. Will the boys place it high on their list of best albums from 2005, or will it be a trip back to a time best left forgotten? Come along and find it!

On this episode of Vinyl Verdict, Bell, Jamie and Plouffe listen to Jamie's next pick, David Bowie's The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars. His fifth studio album, this was his breakout album in both the US and UK, catapulting him to stardom. Initially giving it a lukewarm review, Rolling Stone later named the album number 6 on their list of the 100 Best Albums of the Last 20 Years in 1987 and later named it the 35th (later 40th) best on their 500 Greatest Albums of All Time list. A loose concept album, more akin to the previously covered American Idiot than Tommy, the album begins by describing how Earth has five years left before it dies, and gradually introduces Ziggy Stardust, a space alien turned sex god rockstar who visits Earth, starts a band, succumbs to his own ego and is then killed by his fans. Will the boys dig the crazy space alien sex god? Is this album a good way to spend time in the last five years of Earth? Come along and find out!

On this episode of Vinyl Verdict, Bell, Jamie and Plouffe listen to Bell's next pick, Woodkid's The Golden Age. Snippets of the album were teased in singles from 2011, 2012 and 2013, with the final release coming in February 2013. The single Run Boy Run has been used in over 80 advertisements, movie trailers, films and TV shows, and its music video was nominated for Best Short Form Music Video at the 2013 Grammy Awards. Most reviewers agreed that the music feels powerful, expansive and had excellent production value, but most disagreed on the situation where you would want to sit down and listen to this album. Who is this album for? When would you listen to it? Will the boys enjoy it? Come along and find out!