Red Mosquito

darth_vedder wrote:I even love Hitchhiker. I don't think it would fit the album at all, but it's a great b-side / outtake.

Hitchhiker!

Man, I always forget this was a Binaural outtake. You're right, it doesn't really fit on the album, but I really love it. It's so much fun. I'll have to play around with an alternate tracklist that includes Hitchhiker.

digster wrote:Also, I think I would disagree about Backspacer's consistency. The gap between it's best and worst track (The End and Amongst the Waves) may be greater than almost any other one of their records.

it's not so much the gap between a high and a low the way I'm thinking of this as much as how many songs you'd rate as really good, how many as average, how many as below average, etc. Whether they like Backspacer or don't I think (maybe this is wrong) most posters either think the songs are mostly all pretty good or all pretty weak

durdencommatyler wrote:

digster wrote:Also, I think I would disagree about Backspacer's consistency. The gap between it's best and worst track (The End and Amongst the Waves) may be greater than almost any other one of their records.

Those are two of my favorite three songs on the album. I left the "Amongst the Waves is garbage" stuff in the dust a while ago.

Force of Nature is one of my least favorite songs in the catalog. But the other 9 songs are good to great. FoN is the only outlier.

yeah that's nicely put. the number of 'outliers' on the album is for me the mark of consistency, not the size of the outlier.

durdencommatyler wrote:

darth_vedder wrote:I even love Hitchhiker. I don't think it would fit the album at all, but it's a great b-side / outtake.

Hitchhiker!

Man, I always forget this was a Binaural outtake.

i work hard to forget

Stip wrote:yeah that's nicely put. the number of 'outliers' on the album is for me the mark of consistency, not the size of the outlier.

Really Good
Rival
Parting Ways
Insignificance
Grievance

Pretty Good
Nothing as It Seems

Average
Light Years
Breakerfall

Below average
God's dice
Evacuation
Thin Air
Of a Girl
Soon Forget



As others have said, for me this is a pretty inconsistent album.

Sleight of Hand is tough for me to place. I don't like it, but i respect it

durdencommatyler wrote:

Stip wrote:yeah that's nicely put. the number of 'outliers' on the album is for me the mark of consistency, not the size of the outlier.

Agreed.

I'd hope so. It was your point!

Stip wrote:

durdencommatyler wrote:

Stip wrote:yeah that's nicely put. the number of 'outliers' on the album is for me the mark of consistency, not the size of the outlier.

Agreed.

I'd hope so. It was your point!

Sorry. I meant to delete the "agreed" after I added the

I've since edited the post.

are you really sorry?

The little "bridge" in Gods' Dice is 15 seconds of heaven and makes up for the mediocrity that surrounds it.

Stip wrote:are you really sorry?

I edited the post didn't I?!

Stip wrote:

digster wrote:Also, I think I would disagree about Backspacer's consistency. The gap between it's best and worst track (The End and Amongst the Waves) may be greater than almost any other one of their records.

it's not so much the gap between a high and a low the way I'm thinking of this as much as how many songs you'd rate as really good, how many as average, how many as below average, etc. Whether they like Backspacer or don't I think (maybe this is wrong) most posters either think the songs are mostly all pretty good or all pretty weak

I suppose with that definition I would agree about Backspacer, although does having consistency automatically necessitate having quality? Probably not by the strictest definition, but it does seem off to call an album consistent if it's consistently mediocre or poor. But I see your point.

I've mentioned it before recently, but when it comes to Puzzles and Games, what's there beyond a great chorus? The song barely seems completed, much less a great song in it's own right. I wonder how much of it is filling in the blanks of what a great song it could have been, rather than what it is.

digster wrote:

Stip wrote:

digster wrote:Also, I think I would disagree about Backspacer's consistency. The gap between it's best and worst track (The End and Amongst the Waves) may be greater than almost any other one of their records.

it's not so much the gap between a high and a low the way I'm thinking of this as much as how many songs you'd rate as really good, how many as average, how many as below average, etc. Whether they like Backspacer or don't I think (maybe this is wrong) most posters either think the songs are mostly all pretty good or all pretty weak

I suppose with that definition I would agree about Backspacer, although does having consistency automatically necessitate having quality? Probably not by the strictest definition, but it does seem off to call an album consistent if it's consistently mediocre or poor. But I see your point.

Yeah, I don't think consistency and quality have anything to do with each other. Nickleback is a terrible band. They're always terrible. So, at least, they are consistent.

digster wrote:I've mentioned it before recently, but when it comes to Puzzles and Games, what's there beyond a great chorus? The song barely seems completed, much less a great song in it's own right. I wonder how much of it is filling in the blanks of what a great song it could have been, rather than what it is.

The song seems like it's still in demo form, I think. But it feels like a complete demo - a complete thought. It just hasn't been fully fleshed out, maybe. But all the elements are there.

durdencommatyler wrote:

Stip wrote:are you really sorry?

I edited the post didn't I?!

now i feel like I need to go back and edit my post to reflect the new original. Thanks for the extra work, jerk!

digster wrote:

Stip wrote:

digster wrote:Also, I think I would disagree about Backspacer's consistency. The gap between it's best and worst track (The End and Amongst the Waves) may be greater than almost any other one of their records.

it's not so much the gap between a high and a low the way I'm thinking of this as much as how many songs you'd rate as really good, how many as average, how many as below average, etc. Whether they like Backspacer or don't I think (maybe this is wrong) most posters either think the songs are mostly all pretty good or all pretty weak

I suppose with that definition I would agree about Backspacer, although does having consistency automatically necessitate having quality? Probably not by the strictest definition, but it does seem off to call an album consistent if it's consistently mediocre or poor. But I see your point.

consistency is definitely not the same thing as quality. The point this was coming out of was just my observation that the majority of PJ albums seem to have a wide mix of songs on them in terms of quality--that only a few stayed at the same level (for better or worse) throughout

digster wrote:I've mentioned it before recently, but when it comes to Puzzles and Games, what's there beyond a great chorus? The song barely seems completed, much less a great song in it's own right. I wonder how much of it is filling in the blanks of what a great song it could have been, rather than what it is.

well it is a great chorus, which is no small thing (the nice bridge too, but LY has that also). I also liked the hushed, running water feel to the verses, which transition really nicely into the chorus. I really love the verses music, actually

durdencommatyler wrote:

digster wrote:I've mentioned it before recently, but when it comes to Puzzles and Games, what's there beyond a great chorus? The song barely seems completed, much less a great song in it's own right. I wonder how much of it is filling in the blanks of what a great song it could have been, rather than what it is.

The song seems like it's still in demo form, I think. But it feels like a complete demo - a complete thought. It just hasn't been fully fleshed out, maybe. But all the elements are there.

The second verse in particular to me does not sound like it's anything yet. Ed's just mumbling over the top, which I don't really knock him for; it hadn't been completed yet. But if we start comparing that to Light Years, than I think you do have to be critical of the ways in which it's lesser because it's not done.

I always thought it was a great chorus, it just seemed hidden inside a song that was only half done, if that. And the bridge which stip mentioned to my ears sounds so much better and feels so much more natural in Light Years.

Stip wrote:

durdencommatyler wrote:

Stip wrote:are you really sorry?

I edited the post didn't I?!

now i feel like I need to go back and edit my post to reflect the new original. Thanks for the extra work, jerk!

For god's sake show some agency!