Originally Posted by boardsofcanada sorry about the length of the SAW review. I got carried away... What do you guys think of me getting a member journal when I finish this list? I'm just curious of what you guys think.

Originally Posted by BottleUpAndEssplode I'd love to see a journal from you and I actually love the fact that you get carried away with your writing. It just shows to me how into the music you are and I think that enthusiasm comes across really well in your writing.

Originally Posted by boardsofcanada this is why you're my favourite

#8: NEU!: NEU! 75


Hi, MB! notice anything different? I'm back, with the #8 entry. I remember neglecting this album for the longest time for no apparent reason. I loved NEU! and NEU! 2 but for some reason I was reluctant to listen to this one. Well, one day I was without internet access (I was in rural Alberta, the boringest place on the face of the earth) and I finally manned up and listened to it. Well, now I can say that I completely regret that. This is an awesome album that blurs genres together in the awesomest way possible. Apparently, one half of the album was dedicated to Rother's more ambient style of music and the other half was Dinger's more aggressive songs.

On the ambient part of the album, you have three tracks; Isi, Seeland and Leb Wohl. Isi is a pretty song that reminds me of the road trips that I took every summer to my family in Montreal. These Kraftwerk Castaways sure know what they're doing. This song is a beautiful, spacey song that used to be a summer anthem to me, about two years ago, when I first found it. The next ambient-ish track, Seeland, is a happy, hopeful slow track that reminds me of my first airplane trip when I was ten. I flew at sunset, so it was very pretty, and nighttime above the clouds was gorgeous, with glowing cities, twinkling stars, and hazy moonlit clouds. The next track, Leb Wohl, which translates into "farewell" according to Wikipedia, is a VERY chill track, with atmospheric pianos and and the sounds of the ocean, and faint vocals. It's hard to believe that this music is from 1975, because it's so full, and definitely not from it's time. You always hear those tinny recordings from 1970-something and it really isn't that impressive, but right here, you have a beautiful, full, rich sound. Leb Wohl probably wasn't the best place to leave the ambient side, because it sure is shocking to go from a pretty piano track to AND YOU'RE JUST ANOTHER HERO OMG! screaming. Speaking of Hero , I personally think this is the best song. It's a proto-punk masterpiece, filled with energy, sweet drums and an angry atmosphere (with lots of yelling!). the next song, E-Musik, is damn cool. What the hell did they do to it? whatever they did, it sounds pretty neat. The next aggressive song, After Eight, is a little more atmospheric sounding than Hero, but still keeps the proto-punk charm. This song is another favourite for me, with Klaus Dinger's screamed vocals, pleading the words Help me through the night!. Echoey yelps abound in the backround. I think it was terrible of kraftwerk to kick these guys out of their band. Imagine how awesome they'd sound if The members of NEU! stayed in the band! But yet again, Krautrock just wouldn't be the same, would it?

#7: Panda Bear: Person Pitch



Ah, yes. This overhyped thing. I usually hate pitchfork-hyped indie crap, but this is awesome! (same thing goes with most of Animal Collective's stuff. I don't understand the amount of hate that goes around AnCo) This album, made by the ledgendary Pitchfork god Panda Bear, gained lots of attention back in '07, claiming a "love it or hate it" status among the music nerd croud. I personally love this album. I'm a sucker for minimalism and repetition, so I was pretty much in love with the album by the first track. I honestly didn't want to like this album, either, because I hated the Animal Collective fans. After I finally accepted the fact that this album is actually good, it started to climb my personal top abum charts.

The first track, Comfy In Nautica, is a happy, sunny track that features the repetition I love, with beautiful reverberated vocals, and I swear to god Panda Bear sampled himself on this song. If you've heard his rarer solo album, Young Prayer, you should be able to recognize the clapping from Untitled 5 in the background. I could be mistaken, though. The next song, Take Pills, opens with an unidenifiable sound, that serves as a form of percussion in the background, making way for Panda Bear's hazy, harmonized vocals. once the first part is over, an acoustic guitar sample comes in and ups the tempo a bit. The song is more upbeat at this point. Sure, I have no Idea what on earth the Panda Bro is saying, but I like what I hear. the song takes a stop with that sound that an airplane makes when it tells you to put your seatbelt on. There's some ambient noise and then the song fades into nothing. The most recognized song on the album, Bros, is one of the long songs on the album. It's the most repetitive, and it evolves very slowly, but if you listen close enough, you'll be able to hear lots of subtle noises. From the odd crying and screaming samples to the sound of passing cars, and much more. about halfway through the song, it begins to go somewheres. It features a new guitar sample and the sound of slowed speech. the vocals shift a bit, and don't seem to be saying much, but that's okay. This song is one of the two twelve minute songs, clocking in at exactly 12:30, which seems to go by really fast, and seems like 6.00 rather than 12:30. That's a pretty hard feat, too. The next song, (a personal favourite) I'm Not features creepy gothic voices in the background and a drum pattern you'd expect in a downtempo electronica song. And then you've got Noah Lennox's Gorgeous vocals on top of that. My absolute favourite of the record, Good Girl/Carrots is the best 12:00 song here. it's 12 seconds longer than Bros, but is it ever good! it features alien-eque vocals in the first part, in a soup of unidentifiable samples from lord knows where. The second part of the song, is much more happy and upbeat, with ledgible lyrics this time. I love the parts where the vocals on part two are reverberated, which makes the song even more hazy. In the background, there are plenty of echoey zooms and swooshes, which contributes to the atmosphere of the piece. the next part, starts out with a groovy, gothic sounding intro, and takes a music-box-esque turn, with an early Kraftwerk sample. Lennox's vocals are as hazy as ever on the third part, with those signature harmonies he used with his band Animal Collective. the next track Search For Delicious is a droney-ambient song, which extremely stunning, sonically, with little glimpses of Panda Bro's voice, in a stew of repetition and atmosphere. The last song, Ponytail, Is a nice ending to a near-perfect album. It reminds me of a videogame I had when I was younger, for some reason. This is a fantastic Minimalist-pop album. Even if you don't like it, at least understand the appeal. (And no, B cuz der on druuugz an teh hiptas think der kewl cuz dere rebelz is not a valid answer. Think musically.)