Zach Condon is an artist who can create an album that incorporates instruments like the trumpet, flugelhorn, ukulele, accordion, cello, melodica, upright bass, trombone, tuba, and glockenspiel without it sounding like circus music. One of the biggest draws with a band like Beirut is their ability to create beautiful music with traditional instrumentation (not electric guitars) that you just don’t get in many other places. When holding this album in your hands one feels lucky to be a part of it as well. Packing the studio with a who’s who of great musicians, the instrumentation has the tightness that can only come about in the flow of veterans applying their craft to a project they feel lucky to be a part of. One of the greatest breakup albums of all time, Beck’s seventh studio album came on the heels of a split with his fiancée (9-yr relationship) on the eve of his 30th birthday.Produced by Nigel Godrich, Sea Change not only contains some of Beck’s best work (his best complete album in our opinion), but also has a lushness and clarity of sound that truly brings shivers down the spine when listened to on vinyl.
With Revolver, one finds the right band at the right time with everything falling beautifully into place…to not own and know this vinyl record is nothing short of a musical crime. “Tomorrow Never Knows,” the final song on the album, stands not only as a forerunner to the psychedelic rock movement, but also reveals just how far ahead of the times the Beatles were, using automatic double tracking for Lennon’s vocals, reverse guitar, and multiple looped tape effects. “Eleanor Rigby” features a string octet and is very much an example of Paul McCartney’s genius, although each of the members contributed to the lyrics. After producer George Martin created his own label, the group then had time to develop the album at their own pace without anxious record execs breathing down their necks. The artistic and technical innovation that occurred during the 300 hours of studio time for the Fab Four is as astonishing as it is unmatched, taking place while the band was truly in its prime. Q: Why is Revolver the best Beatles album to own on vinyl?Ī: Because it’s the best Beatles album period. Triple gatefold with gorgeous album art, combined with a much-improved remastering means you’ll get one of the best hip hop albums ever made, looking and sounding its best. Produced by the Dust Brothers, the Beastie Boys’ sophomore follow-up to Licensed to Ill is arguably their best work and the 20th anniversary pressing of the album is incredibly well done. It’s of the moment and feels new, but it’s also striking in its immediacy and comes across as friendly and welcoming.” A complete album with one of the most recognizable vinyl record jackets in recent times. Said Mark Richardson at the time, “What they’ve constructed here is a new kind of electronic pop-one which is machine-generated and revels in technology but is also deeply human, never drawing too much attention to its digital nature. The best album to date from the collection of musical safari guides (Avey Tare, Panda Bear, Deakin, & Geologist) is also their most accessible & most uniquely them for those looking to see/hear what all the fuss is about. To listen to Animal Collective is an experience. We hope that it will create a discussion and you, the reader, will tell us your own picks by tweeting us Enjoy! Animal Collective - Merriweather Post Pavillion The perfect best vinyl record list is as elusive an idea yet we love chasing after it…somewhere in the pursuit is a spirit of curation that we think leads to a better relationship with music overall.
Most of the albums on this list would be equally at home on a best albums of all-time list, however we paid special attention to the qualities and characteristics that distinguished them as great vinyl albums. This is not always as simple an endeavor as it may first seem. When talking about the best vinyl records (a subject we’re all extremely passionate about) one must be careful to distinguish the “vinyl” aspect from simply a best albums list.
#Madvillainy album cover update#
To create this list we (your friendly Vinyl Me, Please worker bees) collaborated with the fine gents at Vinyl + Cocktails to expand, update and improve a best vinyl albums list they’d posted a while back. Below is a list of 52 albums we consider essential to own on vinyl due to a variety of factors to include: sound, production, mastering, album artwork, special features, etc.