ReefaJones: Swans Studio Albums Ranked

ReefaJones 11.24.23	true?
mryrtmrnfoxxxy 11.24.23	i don't get this band man
kkarron 11.24.23	Yeh not big on this take at all. Cop, Filth and Soundtracks are way beyond this take.
ReefaJones 11.24.23	I knew there would be Cop defenders coming out of the woodwork Nah, miss me with that
Ryus 11.24.23	their reunion stuff is mid 14-16 should all be way higher my top 3 is probably children of god white light and cop
insomniac15 11.24.23	Cop still has punch, but Holy Money and Greed are too bland in sound overall. It's shame because Coward for example and A Screw are awesome, especially live.
Ryus 11.24.23	yeah public castration is probably their best release overall
cylinder 11.24.23	Ew I don’t like all these reunion albums mixed in with the good stuff
Ryus 11.24.23	i would honestly probably put them all on the bottom lol
JohnnyoftheWell 11.24.23	ultimate 3.5 band reunion stuff is overrated, but not as much as the likes of children of god and soundtracks are overfetishised. can understand fucking with their folk or meat grinder shit, but gira's brittle edgecred is not a front I've ever wanted to buy into. greasy pseud act
ReefaJones 11.24.23	Early swans, COG to 90s Swans and reunion swans are almost 3 different bands so I can see how some would say their post reunion stuff is the worst. It's just not the kind of band they are into which is fine. You like No wave industrial noise rock more than long and epic post rock
cylinder 11.24.23	tf, Children of God is one of the best albums of the 80s
ReefaJones 11.24.23	"reunion stuff is overrated, but not as much as the likes of children of god and soundtracks are overfetishised. can understand fucking with their folk or meat grinder shit, but gira's brittle edgecred is not a front I've ever wanted to buy into. greasy pseud act" this sounds like something an old fart would write because he's mad he just "doesn't get it" even after having tried over and over again to fit in lol
JohnnyoftheWell 11.24.23	gira's allergy to subtlety and enduring relationship with pompous gritty grandstanding have never made getting it an issue lmao, swans forever more inconvenient than inaccessible fwiw i do think there's a good case to be made for TBK - man shows a few fangs there instead of tirelessly egging on the mystique as on the seer
ArsMoriendi 11.24.23	I was recently listening to Oxygen because I remembered it being pretty good, but upon a revisit, it was surprisingly more vacuous than I remembered Like I get that's meant to be a slow burn to the punch (drone etc) but the climax when it gets there is surprisingly not that interesting. So much modern "noise rock" feels so clean and empty, I don't get that kind of noise rock. Amp up that distortion, I want chaos. I wonder if really good production is antithetical to noisiness
ArsMoriendi 11.24.23	I might check Filth someday though since it's nothing like that from the little I've heard
cylinder 11.24.23	“You like No wave industrial noise rock more than long and epic post rock“ Or, we like songs more than wank
ReefaJones 11.24.23	"Or, we like songs more than wank" you can call it wank all you like but you just repeated what I said
cylinder 11.24.23	“So much modern "noise rock" feels so clean and empty” Agreed. A lot of new bands labeled “noise rock” don’t really seem to get what that means. Amp up that distortion, I want chaos [123]
mryrtmrnfoxxxy 11.24.23	which ones have the songs?
mryrtmrnfoxxxy 11.24.23	also [4]
ReefaJones 11.24.23	Also my mans calls it wank but at the same time 5s Drive By by The Necks which I like too but The Necks are up there in the pantheon of wank
cylinder 11.24.23	The Necks drone, they don’t wank lol Totally baseless comparison too
ReefaJones 11.24.23	you don't get to talk your way out of this. You like wank
cylinder 11.24.23	If you really think The Necks wank, I think you’re misunderstanding what is meant by that term
mryrtmrnfoxxxy 11.24.23	Swans Studio Albums Wanked
JohnnyoftheWell 11.24.23	lmfao the necks are one of the most cut-and-dry examples of a less-is-more ethos deployed perfectly, absolutely absurd to throw the wank label at them
ReefaJones 11.24.23	"If you really think The Necks wank, I think you’re misunderstanding what is meant by that term" explain what you mean by it then.
ReefaJones 11.24.23	"lmfao the necks are one of the most cut-and-dry examples of a less-is-more ethos deployed perfectly" people say the same thing about post reunion swans though. I mean they'll literally take a one note riff and draw it out for 5 minutes. You just like it more when the Necks do it which is fair but both have a "less is more" ethos
cylinder 11.24.23	Aimless noodling for the sake of it. Worst offenders are probably prog rock and tech death. I wouldn’t say The Necks wank cuz most of the time they’re repeating the same motifs over and over, for the hypnotic effect of a drone I know Swans does drone too but what I remember most about The Seer and To Be Kind especially is aimless noodling
ReefaJones 11.24.23	Yeah I don't get the noodling on the seer and to be kind at all. In fact I don't get that with any of their albums
Flugmorph 11.24.23	14-16 done dirty
ReefaJones 11.24.23	"14-16 done dirty" Yeah I truly don't get what people like about those.
JohnnyoftheWell 11.24.23	"Aimless noodling for the sake of it" 100%. wank = indulgence, which is harder to pinpoint in comparatively spartan music like drone/ambient/post-rock than in oversaturated shite like prog/tech death (though defs a lot on either side of the equation that i'd call wank), but the necks have such obvious discipline in their chemistry in a trio and in the patience that they churn over each motif that it's a ridiculous claim to pin on them swans would not be my go-to example for wank, but a lot of the creepy character acting on the seer and TBK squarely fits the bill. Gira's vocal on Just a Little Boy is a perfect example of a performer indulging a weak idea for more than it's worth. She Loves Us and ig Oxygen are good examples of ideas that verge v strongly on wank, but are tied to focused songwriting and stick the landing
ArsMoriendi 11.24.23	What's the best modern (post 2005?) noise rock band that actually is noisy. As in no-pristine production, lots of distortions/jarring noises, not always being able to tell what's going sometimes because it sounds like BZZZZZZKSSSSCH Stuff like the 2-min mark of this song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ns4Ohto6chk
JohnnyoftheWell 11.24.23	the goslings hyakka springtime women otori sprain usssy rhododendron space camp limited express has gone dale kerrigan
Egarran 11.24.23	When I read Johnny's comments, I touch myself.
ReefaJones 11.24.23	I don't mind the creepy voices. I also like when Tom Waits does that shit haha. Adds to the atmosphere.
Winesburgohio 11.25.23	Swans kinda sucked until My Father... which actually rules, I feel grateful I caught them touring that. Eden Prison live is one of my best concert experiences. (interestingly this was either 2010 or 2011 and I think they played as many songs from the The Seer as they did My Father) (...unfortunately)
Winesburgohio 11.25.23	oh god i know that reads as "pick the most contrary take possible and enthusiastically grab it by the horns" but like how disparate is My Father... from the beloved Kayo Dot albums really
anode 11.25.23	Another bad take from someone whose never had a good take
Winesburgohio 11.25.23	i'll get there eventually! tomorrow is a new day
anode 11.25.23	Dude keep your inane rambling to one comment next time
Winesburgohio 11.25.23	I will live my life as I please thank you. You are talking to a 100% iq elder statesman so please be considerate lest you appear an unmannered clod, dim of wit
Spec 11.25.23	One of the most boring bands on the planet cool.
porcupinetheater 11.25.23	Swans are good Public listening to Swans is a good idea :]
kkarron 11.25.23	you people sure are bitchy and uppity for a site that rates metalcore
unclereich 11.25.23	Damn you got through their discog fast! Nice list not too shabby.
Icebloom 11.25.23	Nice list, agreed about Soundtracks & The Seer. Would rate White Light a but more though
porcupinetheater 11.25.23	Tbh list has 15 good albums on it (maybe 16 I ain’t heard The Beggar yet, but the track record’s pre good)
cylinder 11.25.23	@Ars Check Absolutes by Sightings