Another 0's: 1970, 1980 and 1990 albums

Although I already did a Os list type topic where the idea was to list our own and compare each others choices, I wanted to do a poll to complement/ accessorise Mellotron Storm's aka John's 1970, 1980 and 1990 album poll with other choices of releases from those years. Note that Can's Monster Movie would be in my list, but I count it as 1969 instead of 1970. Similarly, Rahmann would be here but I have it for 1979 rather than 1980. I was going to do do Exuma (love it) but then decided to cover another King Crimson album that I really like (one of my faves), and that feels right when doing both VdGG albums. I wanted to add in some of the RateYourMusic genre descriptions.

This list is based on what I am most interested in these days (Present for instance would have been here for sure some years ago), so please excuse what to you might seem obvious omissions from my list that are not in John's poll. My Awesome Prog lists are much longer and those are very incomplete based on what I know and like.

This is a multiple votes enabled poll, vote for up to five (or more) albums in the poll.

1970 releases:
Magma - Kobaïa (Zeuhl, Jazz-Rock)
The Soft Machine - Third (Canterbury Scene, Jazz-Rock, Avant Prog)
Van der Graaf Generator - The Least We Can Do Is Wave To Each Other (Prog, Psych)
King Crimson - Lizard (Progressive Rock, Symphonic Prog, Jazz-Rock)
Pink Floyd - Atom Heart Mother (Progressive Rock, Psychedelic Rock, Experimental)
Van der Graaf Generator - H to He Who Am the Only One (Prog, Symph)
Nico - Desertshore (not in PA, Avant-Folk, Chamber Folk)
Supersister - Present From Nancy (Canterbury Sound)
Bo Hansson - Sagan om Ringen (Symphonic Prog, Psychedelic Rock)
Linda Perhacs - Parallelograms (Psychedelic Folk, Chamber Folk)
King Crimson - In the Wake of Poseidon (Progressive Rock, Art Rock)

1980 releases:
Art Zoyd - Génération sans Futur (Avant-Prog, Chamber Music, Modern Classical, RIO)
Joy Division - Closer (not in PA, Post-Punk, Gothic Rock, Coldwave)
Bobby Beausoleil - Lucifer Rising (Psychedelic Rock, Film Score)
Siouxsie and The Banshees - Kaleidoscope (not in PA, Post-Punk, Gothic Rock)          
Abus Dangereux - Le Quatrieme Mouvement (Jazz-Rock, Zeuhl, Canterbury Scene)
Eskaton - Ardeur (Zeuhl, Space Rock, Jazz-Rock)      
Glenn Branca - Lesson No. 1 (EP, not in PA, Totalism, Post-Punk, Post-Rock, Noise Rock)
Picchio dal Pozzo - Abbiamo Tutti I Suoi Problemi (Progressive Rock, Canterbury Scene, Avant-Prog)      
Kate Bush - Never for Ever (Art Pop, Progressive Pop, Baroque Pop, Art Rock, Glam Rock)
Tuxedomoon - Half-Mute (not in PA, Post-Punk, Experimental Rock, Minimal Wave)

1990 releases:
Cocteau Twins - Heaven or Las Vegas (not in PA, Dream Pop, Ethereal Wave)
Dead Can Dance - Aion (Neoclassical Darkwave, Neo-Medieval Folk)
Depeche Mode - Violator (not in PA, Synthpop, Darkwave, not in PA)     
John Zorn - Naked City     (Avant-Garde Jazz, Jazz-Rock, Avant-Prog)

Edited by Logan - May 31 2025 at 17:29

Mellotron Storm wrote: Voted Third, H To He Who Am... and Presents From Nancy from '70 and Picchio Dal Pozzo and Abus Dangereux from '80. All favourites. The problem with me just having five per year in my polls is that I'm leaving out some absolute favs.

Thanks John. While I like to maximise the poll options, I still miss lots of favourites, and of course some of my faves were covered by your poll. As David says, quality over quantity, but of course one can have both quantity and quality.

While I usually want to list more, I also can like the rigour/ discipline of limiting the number (setting strict limits). I think some don't like multiple choice polls because they like the discipline, rigours and challenge involved in ultimately choosing just the one. Of course for some it's easy when you have a clear favourite and/or only one you like.

Depeche Mode - Violator
Pink Floyd - Atom Heart Mother
Van der Graaf Generator - The Least We Can Do Is Wave to Each Other

When albums I consider a personal favorite ends up fourth or fifth for my attemnt on listing the in order of preference (in the year it was released), I know not what to do. There's no uncertainty about the first album on the two first lists, but after that it gets crowded.

70:

Magma - Kobaïa      
The Soft Machine - Third
Van der Graaf Generator - H to He Who Am the Only One
Linda Perhacs - Parallelograms
King Crimson - Lizard
Bo Hansson - Sagan om Ringen
King Crimson - In the Wake of Poseidon
Supersister - Present From Nancy
Pink Floyd - Atom Heart Mother
Nico - Desertshore

80:

Art Zoyd - Génération Sans Futur
Abus Dangereux - Le Quatrieme Mouvement      
Kate Bush - Never for Ever
Joy Division - Closer      
Bobby Beausoleil - Lucifer Rising
Siouxsie and The Banshees - Kaleidoscope
Eskaton - Ardeur

90:

Cocteau Twins - Heaven or Las Vegas      
Dead Can Dance - Aion      
Depeche Mode - Violator

I've listened to all of these, but never actually familarized myself with them enough to have an opinion. I guess for some reason none of them left the kind of impression that make me want to revisit an album. But it has happened many times that I picked something I've dismissed or whatever decades ago - and suddenly love what I'm hearing.

Glenn Branca - Lesson No. 1
Tuxedomoon - Half-Mute
Picchio dal Pozzo - Abbiamo Tutti I Suoi Problemi
John Zorn - Naked City

-except, as the younger Saperlipopette! didn't warm up to Naked City I don't think there's much hope. This five star review does not make me any more earger to retry it either:

Pure insanity, Captain Beefheart playing Grindcore, Napalm Death playing Jazz, Mr. Bungle after some ecstasy pills

...just reading it makes me feel old. Even older than I am:)

Thanks for all of the responses,

Mellotron Storm wrote: I like Depeche Mode from your 90's list. and I have to say I'm surprised Tuxedomoon aren't on this site. Lots of post punk styled bands are. I know there's more to it but these guys were adventerous.

I've been rather surprised since around the time I joined this site not to see Tuxedomoon in PA, and I have continued to be quite surprised at its continued absence. It's a name that has come up many times as an odd exclusion or possibility. I'm sure it's been considered, and I could maybe try suggesting it again, but it's a known enough name that has come up again and again that I figure. Well, I don't know what I figure. Commonly I just treat it as if it were in PA at the forum. I would quite like to try my hand at reviewing Holy Wars and The Ghost Sonata (and Desire and Half-Mute) for PA.

octopus-4 wrote: Without Atom Heart Mother I would have voted for Kobaia

You can vote for both as I made it multiple choice -- I know not all like to or choose to vote for multiple options when given the chance.

Saperlipopette! wrote: .... -except, as the younger Saperlipopette! didn't warm up to Naked City I don't think there's much hope. This five star review does not make me any more earger to retry it either: Pure insanity, Captain Beefheart playing Grindcore, Napalm Death playing Jazz, Mr. Bungle after some ecstasy pills ...just reading it makes me feel old. Even older than I am:)

Snipping you thoughtful and detailed post for space: To be honest, there is lots that I could have put ahead of Naked City from 1970 and 1980 and I partially put it up there for Mirakaze hoping she's still around. 1990 is one of the weakest years for quantity in my collection of 1967 until now (I like U Totem from John's poll a lot and do adore that Cocteau Twins and really like the Dead Can Dance and think that's a great Depeche Mode...). I like music off that Naked City, but as a whole album it can be a bit much in a way to want to pay attention to all the way through. That description sounds kind of appealing to me in a weird way. Does not need saying, I know, but I love various Beefheart and Mr. Bungle's California incidentally. From the Naked City albums, I adore Sunset Surfer off 1993's Radio.



Speaking of feeling old, I sometimes get a shock looking in the mirror. In my mind I'm still about 25 commonly.

^ I should have said since at least 1965, as 1965 and 1966 are actually strong years, and I have more from 1989 and 1991 (both in PA and not). I have not heard that Rabih Abou-Khalil album (or most of his). I love Blue Camel.

Incidentally, really for my own interest to compare eight albums I like from surrounding years, 1989 and 1991:

1989:
Cardiacs - On Land and in The Sea
Thinking Plague - In This Life
After Dinner - Paradise Of Replica
The Cure - Disintegration (not in PA)
Kate Bush - The Sensual World
Thinking Feller's Union Local 282 - Tangle (not in PA)
Asylum Party - Borderline (not in PA)
Swans - The Burning World (not one of the strongest but I still like it and LOVE God Damn the Sun).

1991:
Swans - White Light From the Mouth of Infinity
Talk Talk - Laughing Stock
Cardiacs - Songs For Ships And Irons
Tuxedomoon - The Ghost Sonata (not in PA)
Controlled Bleeding - Golgotha (not in PA)
Mercury Rev - Yerself Is Steam
The Orb - The Orb's Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld (not in PA)
Splint - Spiderland

Edited by Logan - 22 hours 53 minutes ago at 15:00

By the way, some 1990 albums I love:
Killing Joke - Extremities, Dirt, and Various Repressed Emotions (best Killing Joke and that means something; grabs my album of the year title)
Suzanne Vega - Days of Open Hand
Geteilte Köpfe - Don't Ask
Ozric Tentacles - Erpland (together with Aion probably best on PA)
Marc Ribot - Rootless Cosmopolitans
Limerick Junction - With Friends Like That (this and maybe Geteilte Köpfe are probably pretty obscure and you won't find them if you haven't found them at the time)

Perhacs
King Crimson (Lizard)
Art Zoyd
Kate Bush
Branca

Atom Heart Mother and Sagan om Ringen.